


Branch Has A Problem

by LinkCat



Series: The Family Curse [1]
Category: Trolls (2016)
Genre: F/F, F/M, Good and Evil, Heartbreak, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Internal Conflict, M/M, Multi, Revenge, War
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-05
Updated: 2019-01-15
Packaged: 2019-10-04 13:24:50
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 28
Words: 34,905
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17305403
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LinkCat/pseuds/LinkCat
Summary: Branch has a problem that he never talks about. All his friends try to get him to talk about his past. Little do they know just how dark it is.Chapter 1 summary:Legend tells of a family who shares a deep dark story.





	1. The Legend

**Author's Note:**

> Got a lot of plans for this one. Sorry for any mistakes I make. Hope you enjoy!

Poppy had all the young trollings of the village gathered around her. It was story day for the little ones, and she had a good one for them. She opened her scrapbook and they all gasped as a pop out came out, showing a black troll with black hair and red eyes. “Today, I will tell you a story about an evil king. This king was mean, and made his villagers do bad things for his own happiness. He had a curse upon him. Every other generation, the first-born child would be evil. So, when this king had a daughter, he made sure to raise her and kept her alive. When she was old enough to have a child of her own, she had a daughter. This future queen was evil in her own right. She would bully all the little kids and tell them that they were not worthy of her. This continued for over a thousand years, until the kingdom was killed by a Bergen. Legend has it, the family line continues in rogues. They are out there, listening, and waiting to take over another kingdom and start the whole thing all over again.” She closed the scrapbook and looked at all the kids. They all had scared looks on their faces, except for Keith.

“Is it true?” Keith asked. The five-year-old dwarf trolling stood up. He puffed out his chest and smirked. “Because if it is, I will beat that evil king up!”

“Yeah!” The other trollings shouted. They were determined to keep the village safe.

“Don’t worry. It’s just a story.” Poppy smiled at the kids and then looked towards the snack pack. “I’m going to go now. You little ones go play.” She walked towards her friends and grinned. “They loved the story. That was a great idea. Thank you, Guy Diamond!” She hugged him and grinned. “So, what are we going to do today?”

“Other then singing, dancing, and hugging?” Guy Diamond hugged her back and chuckled. “How about we go swimming. It’s hot out today.”

“That sounds like fun!” Cooper started running towards the river.

“I’m down.” DJ Suki followed Cooper. She was feeling hot herself.

The rest of them followed. They were completely alright with going for a swim.

Meanwhile, not far from where Poppy shared her story, there stood a gray troll with almost jet-black hair. Branch had heard the story and had goosebumps. That story was a true story and he knew it. He shivered at the thought and walked towards his bunker. He was really hoping that the legend would die with him. He was a direct decent of the evil king in the story. He didn’t plan to have any children, and if he happened to have any, he planned on killing the first child. It was the only way to stop the curse. He got to his bunker and went down the shaft. He grumbled to himself. He was trying to think of why he tortured himself by sticking around to hear the story. It brought back a lot of bad memories. He got to his library and pulled out a photobook. He sat down in a chair and began flipping through it. It was a handful of remaining photos of his family and stories he had written about them. He was the only survivor of four children. He had had two little sisters and a little brother. His mother killed each of her children not long after their first birthday. Branch was the oldest of her children, and she decided he would get to live. He didn’t understand why she did that until his seventh birthday, when she revealed to him that he was the good prince of a cursed family line. She had told him that he was to listen to her and give her a grandchild. She told him that when that time came, she would raise him or her into a glorious king or queen, and that royal heir would become ruler of the world. Branch didn’t stick around for much longer after that. When his younger brother was born, he left. He couldn’t bare to watch another innocent life killed for his mother’s own pleasures. After watching his youngest one-year old sister die at the hands of his mother, he had gone gray and had been gray since.

A knock on the door interrupted Branch’s thoughts. He sighed and grumbled as he made his way towards the top of the bunker. He opened his peep hole and frowned when he saw it was Poppy. “I am not joining you or your friends today.”

“We are going swimming Branch. Come join us.” Poppy always tried to include the grumpy survivalist in all the activities she did with her friends.

“No thanks.” Branch shut the peep hole and headed towards the kitchen. He needed a cup of coffee. He couldn’t handle Poppy’s hyperactive energy levels.

“Told you he wouldn’t want to join.” Creek smiled softly. “It’s alright. Let’s go to the river. Our friends are waiting.” He took her hand and headed for the river. He looked forward to cooling off.

Poppy walked with him and looked back. She was really hoping he would come this time. She had been trying for the last ten years since he came to the village to get him to join in on activities. She wanted to be his friend.


	2. Waterfall

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It’s hot outside, and Branch takes advantage of some alone time.

A couple hours after Poppy left, Branch decided a bath under the waterfall sounded good. He finished his coffee and walked out the door. He glanced around and then began walking towards the waterfall. It was his favorite place to cool off and bathe. It was tucked behind rocks and gave those who chose to use it some privacy from the eyes of curious trolls. When he arrived, he stripped down nude and walked into the water. He walked over to where the water fell from the rocks above and splashed to the shallows below. He stood under the falling water and began cleaning himself.

Smidge was on her way home from playing with her friends, when she spotted the gray survivalist walking towards the waterfall. Curious, she began to follow him quietly. When he began to strip, she blended into her surroundings. She gapped her mouth open when he walked into the waterfall. He had a sexy buttock. Her eyes went wide when he turned around. His manhood was dangling freely and looked very tantalizing and large. When she saw him close his eyes, she moved closer to the water, and then removed her dress and panties. She set them by Branch’s clothes and stepped into the water. She moved quietly, until she was close enough to him to reach him with her long blue green hair. She stretched it over to him and wrapped him in her long hair. “Hello Branch, you are now in my in my clutches…”

Branch flushed when she trapped him. He looked down at her and frowned. “Smidge?! You’re naked! I’m naked!” He blushed as she inched closer. “Smidge…” He squirmed when she got even closer. He had never seen her nude before. The eighteen-year-old blushed as his member swelled. He found her attractive, but he was nervous about this. The look on her face told him she was interested in him. “What are you doing?!”

Smidge had a smug look on her face as she moved closer to him. She looked up at him and put her hand on his swollen member. “You’re interested.” She ran her hand along his member and shivered when it twitched. She was feeling warm down in her core. She was eighteen herself and found Branch very handsome despite his gray appearance.

“You’re not subtle…” Branch gasped when she touched his member. He groaned, feeling it twitch. “Smidge, we should talk about this.” He didn’t want to have children. He looked at her and bit his lip. Perhaps she was a good choice as a mate. She was small after all and he figured she wouldn’t be able to bare children with how tiny she was.

“We’re going to talk about this?” Smidge looked up at him and smirked. She could tell he was aroused and wanted to mate. She reached down and began to suckle on his member. “Mmm…”

Branch’s eyes went wide as she began to suckle on his swollen member. He moaned and shivered. “Oh my god Smidge…” He wriggled in her hair. He was very pleased. “You’re teasing me. I can’t move.”

“I don’t want you to run.” Smidge mumbled as she made work on his length. She licked his tip and ran her hand along her vulva. She was aroused.

“I won’t run…” Branch felt her tongue along his tip. He breathed hard and made his member twitch a few times on purpose. “That feels so good…”

Smidge slowly resided her hair and let him go. “Run, and I will pin you down.” She had him walk back, until he was against the rock behind the waterfall. She ran her hair along his chin and smirked.

Branch stepped back when she pushed him towards the back. He had no problem with this. They would have more privacy behind the water fall. Once they reached the back, he pulled her in for a kiss. He held her to him and mumbled that she was a tease. He then positioned her so that he was over her on the mossy ground behind the waterfall. He entered his length into her and began to thrust gently at first. She was very tight, and he didn’t want to injure her.

Smidge felt his member enter her. She moaned loudly and grasped onto his arm. She could feel her muscles tighten around his member. She was very pleasantly surprised by now good this felt. “That feels so good…”

Branch kissed her again and thrust faster. She was starting to move up and down with his thrusts. He was pleased. “Very good…” He ran his hand through her hair and tied hair with her. 

Smidge kissed him back and pulsed her muscles. She could feel his hair touch hers. She shivered and exchanged salvia with him.

They mated for a few of hours, before Smidge stumbled out of the water fall. She went and put her dress on. She smiled at him before stumbling towards her home. She had a pleased look on her face.

Branch watched her go. He rinsed off, and then went to put his clothes on. It was getting dark out and had sent her home before anything bad happened to them. Predators were thicker at night time. He headed home, very happy with what just happened.


	3. Truth Or Dare

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Poppy invites her friends to play truth or dare.

A few days had gone by since Branch and Smidge had claimed each other. Branch saw her pretty little face daily after that. They kept it hush hush, at Branch’s request. So far, Smidge was keeping it to herself. She thought it was cute that Branch was being shy.

It was thunder storming today, so Poppy decided that her friends should play an indoor game of truth or dare. She began to gather everyone. Her last stop was Branch’s bunker. She knocked on the door and squirmed with excitement as she waited for him to answer the door.

Branch answered the door right away, thinking it was Smidge. His eye twitched when he saw that the whole snack pack that was at his door. He was only in his robe. He grumbled that he didn’t want to go to a party.

“Hi Branch! Want to come to my place to play truth or dare?” Poppy could hardly hold still. She loved playing that game.

Branch smirked and glanced at Smidge. He had an idea. “Alright, I’m cool with that. Come on in from the rain. I will go get dressed.” He headed down his elevator shaft to go put on his pants.

A look of shock came over everyone’s faces. Not only did Branch agree to play, but he actually invited them into his bunkers! 

Cooper bolted in and began looking at everything. He was very curious and was hoping Branch hid sweets somewhere.

Smidge looked around and smiled. She had been in there a few times, but it was still cool to look around. Branch has a lot of stuff, even in the first level of his bunker. 

“He’s up to something.” Guy Diamond whispered to Poppy. “He has never invited us in here for the last ten years he has lived here.” The normally laid back and easy-going glitter troll was really weirded out.

“It’s fine. He’s probably just bored.” Poppy shrugged her shoulders.

Branch came back up. “Let’s do it here? It’s stormy outside and I have a fire already going. I don’t really want it to die.” He didn’t want to admit it, but he was not a fan of thunder.

The look on Poppy’s face was that of udder and complete shock. She nodded slowly. “Where are we going to do it?”

“Get on the elevator shaft. I will take you to my den.” Branch looked down at Smidge when she stood right next to him. He blushed when she pressed into him. He was really hoping she would behave in front of her friends. Once everyone was on, he rode it down to the bottom of the bunker, and then got off and headed for his den.

The whole snack pack followed him and whispered among themselves. The bunker was much larger than any of them expected.

Branch got into his den and threw some wood into the fire. He sat down in his recliner and looked at them. “What is up with the looks?”

“You have a nice place Branch.” Poppy complimented before sitting down. She was very impressed.

Smidge sat by the fire. The warmth on her back felt good.

The rest of the snack pack sat in a circle. They were all speechless. It was obvious he was organized, kept his place clean, and was a bookworm.

“Bet he has a whole library too. Look at all those books.” Creek whispered to Guy Diamond. He didn’t want to admit it, but he totally wanted to go through all those books. Some of them looked like medical books, and some looked like spiritual books. They were in knowledge heaven.

“Hmm…I’ll get started.” Poppy looked around the room and grinned at Creek since he was whispering to Guy Diamond. “Creek? Truth or dare?”

Creek looked at Poppy and smiled. “Oh, umm…truth.”

“What is your favorite food?” Poppy asked him and smiled.

DJ Suki leaned in. She wanted to know the answer to this. She had a huge crush on Creek.

“I love biscuits.” Creek smiled and looked around the room. He looked at Biggie and smiled. “Biggie, truth or dare?”

“Dare.” Biggie cringed a soon as he said it. He was nervous what he might have to do. He was painfully shy and was not as brave as his friends.

“I dare you to take off your shirt.” Creek smirked.

“This is not strip poker.” Guy Diamond rolled his eyes.

“Says the troll who never wears anything.” Smidge laughed.

Biggie shrugged and pulled off his shirt. He could handle that. It was warm in Branch’s den anyway. He looked around and smiled at Smidge. Smidge was one of his closer friends. “Smidge? Truth or dare?”

Smidge smirked and leaned forward. “Truth.”

Branch flushed when Smidge got chosen. He suddenly looked nervous.

“Tell us a secret that no one knows.” Biggie smiled and shifted Mr. Dinkles so he was on his lap. He had a feeling Smidge was hiding something, and he was curious.

Smidge smirked and looked up at Branch. She then looked at all her friends and leaned forward. “I have had sex with Branch. More then once, for the last three days. Our first time was behind the waterfall.”

Branch’s eyes went wide. He looked down at Smidge and groaned internally. So much for it being a secret anymore.

“Oh snap!” Mr. Dinkles chimed in out of shock.

“What?!” Biggie flushed and glared at Smidge. He was not amused and super jealous. He had a crush on Smidge.

Cooper chocked on his cupcake and looked at Smidge with wide eyes.

Poppy laughed nervously. “Smidge, you’re so funny.” She totally didn’t picture that being true.

Creek stared at Branch and Smidge blankly. As odd as he treated the grumpy survivalist, he did have a bit of a crush on him too. He flushed and grumbled to himself.

Guy Diamond blinked and looked between Branch and Smidge. He didn’t see that coming at all.

The rest of the snack pack was quiet. They were all in shock.

Branch squirmed in his seat. He was very embarrassed.

Smidge smirked and looked over at Poppy. “Poppy, truth or dare?”

“Dare.” Poppy looked confident.

“I dare you to kiss Guy Diamond.” Smidge had a demonic grin on her face.

“OK…” Poppy grinned and walked over to Guy Diamond. She pulled him in for a kiss.

Guy Diamond’s eyes went wide. He felt his heart swell and pulled her in. He returned the kiss and ran his hand through her bright pink hair.

Everyone watched the lip lock. They were not expecting them to like it.

Smidge leaned forward and bit her bottom lip. That went over better then she expected.

Branch looked around. Everyone seemed to have forgotten about his love exchange with Smidge. He slowly relaxed but knew in the back of his mind that he was probably not going to get away with this. He knew how protective they all were of the tiny yellow dwarf troll that was now his new mate.

After several minutes of saliva exchange, Poppy broke the kiss and looked into Guy Diamond’s eyes. She ran her hand along his cheek and let out a giggle. She had really enjoyed that.

Fuzzbert cleared his throat and whispered that they needed to find a room.

Guy Diamond smiled at Poppy, and then nudged her back to where she was sitting. He had really enjoyed that and wanted to do it again, but he knew their friends wouldn’t want to see where his mind was going. He had no pants on to hide his member if it had decided to get very happy.

Poppy walked to where she was sitting and sat down. She looked around and grinned at Branch. “Branch? Truth or dare?”

Branch groaned softly. He knew that this would come. He thought for a moment and tried to decide which would be the lesser of two evils. “Truth.”

“Tell us where you came from?” Poppy smiled at him. She was very curious.

“A place of nightmares. Even your worst dreams are nothing compared to the unbearable pain that was my childhood. You do not want to know my story.” Branch grumbled and crossed his arms.

“Come on Branch, tell us. We are all dying to hear it and you did say truth.” Poppy insisted.

“No seriously, you all do not want to know.” Branch snapped angrily. He didn’t want to talk about it, and he certainly didn’t want them to know about his curse.

“Cool your jets.” Smidge poked him with her pointing finger.

“You lose the game then.” Poppy crossed her arms. She was not amused.

Branch grumbled when Smidge poked him. He had a feeling he wasn’t going to sleep tonight if he didn’t talk. Smidge was stubborn. “Fine, but if you have nightmares tonight, don’t come crying to me.”

Poppy leaned forward. She was very curious now.

Branch sighed and cleared his throat. “I was born to a very small village west of here. I was the firstborn prince to the king and queen of the region. I was a welcomed addition to the family. I was very pampered as a baby and was very spoiled by my father. Things changed after my first sister was born. I was three years old. Mom isolated me from my father and started having me train. On Pansy’s first birthday, my mother killed her. She was pregnant again, and she said she had no room in her heart for a worthless child. I feared for my life, so I made sure to focus on my studies. I did not want to make her angry. It was not long after that that my second sister was born. I made sure to take care of little Rose and protect her with my life. I did not want to see her die too. It was around her first birthday that mom took her from my arms and killed her right in front of me. I was almost seven years old at the time and went gray. I have been gray since. After my seventh birthday, my mom told me that I was to give her a child when I was ready to mate. She was going to take that first child and raise him or her to rule the world. I decided then that I didn’t want to have children, and if I did have children, I would kill the firstborn to end my family’s curse. Every other generation, the first born is evil. I can’t take chances.” He saw a glare come from Smidge. He felt nervous now. He was still in for it tonight. He could sense it. “Right before my eighth birthday, my mom had a son. I ran away after that. I couldn’t watch another baby die.”

Everyone looked at Branch with complete shock on their faces. It was no wonder he didn’t trust anyone.

Smidge was livid. She would have liked to have known that before mating with Branch. She crossed her arms and grumbled that he was not killing any of their children. She was not amused.

Poppy rubbed her right arm and frowned. Branch was right, she didn’t want to know that. She looked over at Smidge and cringed. She was worried about Smidge now. She could see that she was angry and worried about what might happen if she was pregnant. “OK, sorry to make you spill Branch. I think it’s time to go home.” She got up and headed for the elevator shaft. Everyone joined her except for Branch and Smidge.

Branch gulped and looked down at Smidge. “Good thing you can’t get pregnant, right?”

“What?! I never said I was sterile. What are you talking about?!” Smidge put her hands on her hips.

“You’re too small to bare kids, right?” Branch looked nervous.

“My father is a dwarf, and my grandmother was one too. It never stopped them from having kids. My family is actually quite fertile.” Smidge snapped. “You are not killing our firstborn!”

Branch cringed and looked down. “Alright, I won’t kill our firstborn, but I must warn you that that child will be an absolute nightmare.” He looked nervous. He was really falling in love with Smidge, and he was worried that she was going to leave him now.

“Why didn’t you tell me?!” Smidge sneered. “I would have liked to have known!”

“I got caught up in the moment. I’m sorry Smidge.” Branch hung his head and frowned.

Smidge grumbled and sighed. “What is done is done. If you kill my child, I will kill you. Do I make myself clear?!”

“Yes, loud and clear.” Branch sank to the floor and hugged his knees. He was still worried she would leave him.

Smidge could see he was hurting. She sighed and hugged into him. “I’m sorry you had a rough childhood. I can’t imagine.”

“Not your fault…” Branch whispered.

Poppy came back into the room. “We can’t get out of the bunker. The door won’t open.”

“What?” Branch got up and walked towards the elevator shaft. He went up to the top and peeked out the peep hole. He jumped back when he saw a pair of familiar red eyes staring back at him. “Oh my god!” He held his chest and breathed hard. It was his mother. He knew they were all in danger now.


	4. Mommie Dearest

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Branch’s problems suddenly get a whole lot worse.

Branch’s heart was racing. He peeked back out, hoping that he was not staring into the eyes of his evil mother. He cringed, seeing that it was her. He bit his bottom lip and sighed. “Hello, mommie dearest.” He had a bad feeling he knew why she was here. He was surprised she had found him.

“Where is your firstborn? I’m here to retrieve it.” Willow glared down at her son. The light blue troll with dark blue hair had blocked the entrance to his bunker so that no one could leave.

“I have not bore a child.” Branch answered her quietly. He sounded angry.

Poppy was right next to him. She frowned and looked at him. He was telling the truth and that scared her even more.

The rest of the snack pack listened close by. They all were nervous. This older troll sounded livid.

“What the hell has taken you so long?! You have been old enough to have a child for the last four years!” Willow snapped. “I smell other trolls down there with you. You better get your ass busy, or I will kill the entire village you live in, and everyone who is down there! No one is to leave until you all smell like sex and Branch!” Willow was seething.

Branch turned to Poppy. He looked concerned. “We have to listen. She will kill everyone.”

Poppy’s eyes went wide. She didn’t want to have sex with Branch. She wanted to be with Guy Diamond. “You have got to be kidding me…”

“Stop talking and start mating!” Willow snapped and pulled a child in front of her. She held her so that Branch could see her through the peep hole. “Get down there now, or you will watch and hear an innocent child being killed. I am losing my patience!”

Willow’s youngest and only surviving daughter, Cherry was in her mother’s grasp. The maroon colored trolling didn’t dare move. She knew better then to resist. The eight-year-old had had to learn how to be tough in order to survive.

“We’re going.” Branch turned to Poppy. “We have to do this.” He motioned everyone to the elevator shaft and started going down the shaft.

The entire snack pack was squirming and kept as much of a distance from Branch as possible. They did not like the idea of being forced to mate. Smidge was the only one that stood beside him. She was quiet and looked angry.

Once they were out of hearing range and at the bottom of the bunker, Branch turned to them and clenched his fists. “I have a plan. Please hear me out. This is the only way this will work without you all having to mate with me. I want you all to choose someone to mate with. Someone you won’t mind having a child with. Everyone is going to have to mate. I recommend mating with who you have a crush on if you want to be with them for the rest of your life. When we are all done, I will mark your backs with my semen to fool her into thinking I mated with you all. Unfortunately, there will be some uncomfortable matches, because she will want males to be mated too. That means that I will need one of you boys mating with me, and all you boys are going to have to be mated to too.”

“There has to be another way!” Poppy snapped. “I am not allowed to mate under wedlock. I am bond down by rules, and my father will be livid!” She looked scared.

“We have no choice Poppy. I know my mother. If we don’t do this, she will kill everyone, including you and your father. We have to do this for the safety of the colony.” Branch took her hand and led her to Guy Diamond, knowing she had enjoyed that kiss earlier. “Go…we do not have much time. My mother is not a patient woman.”

“Don’t worry Poppy, I will protect you.” Guy Diamond led her away. He was worried about her. She was shaking.

Creek walked up to Branch and put his hand on his shoulder. “I will be happy to help you out Branch. If the firstborn is my child, I will allow you to kill it and end this madness.”

“Thank you, Creek. I appreciate that.” Branch grabbed Smidge’s hand. “I’m going to need your help Smidge.” He was not attracted to Creek, and this was not going to be easy.

As quick as they could physically do so, they all took turns mating with each other. Branch mated with Smidge first, and then quickly had a round with Creek before he lost interest and arousal. Then Creek mated with him. Guy Diamond mated with Poppy. Creek and Guy Diamond had a round with each other. Cooper and Biggie took turns with each other. DJ Suki and Creek mated with each other. Fuzzbert mated with Satin and Chenille. Guy Diamond mated with Fuzzbert. When they were all done, they were all very disturbed and weirded out, but everyone smelled like sex, and that was what they needed to do to get this crazy troll to spare their lives, and the lives of their family and friends in the village. Branch had collected his own semen and put it on all of their backs. Once they were all done, he had them go up the shaft with him. He opened the peep hole and breathed hard. “The deed is done.”

Willow removed the blockade. “Come out here. I have a feeling you are lying to me.” She could smell mating, but Branch was smart. She had a feeling he was being sneaky.

Branch opened the door as soon as he was able to. He quickly grabbed Cherry and sneered at his mother. He looked at her, challenging her to do anything about it. He knew she wouldn’t kill him.

Willow glared at him, but then shrugged her shoulders. “She’s worthless anyway. Only kept her around just in case you up and killed yourself. When I found you, I was planning to kill her. I will just do it later.” She smirked, smelling the heavy scent of mating. She walked among them and looked them all up and down. “I will be back in one year.” She turned and walked away, disappearing into the darkness of the night.

Branch turned to Cherry and looked down at her. “She will not hurt you ever again.” He looked her up and down. She looked like his father, who was a maroon troll with pastel pink hair. He looked into her eyes. They were violet, like their grandmother’s eyes. He was sure he was looking a sister. “What is your name young one?”

Cherry shook her head and looked down. She knew she was not allowed to talk. She was scared. This male looked like the oldest brother that her mother often talked about. She had a feeling she was in the arms of her brother Branch.

“It’s alright, we will figure this out later.” Branch turned to the snack pack and frowned. “I’m sorry…” He walked into his bunker and went to close the door. Smidge squeezed through before he closed it all the way. He cringed and avoided eye contact. “Smidge, you should go home.”

The snack pack, sans Smidge, headed home. They were all very freaked out. Poppy was already making plans. In one year, time, she was going to make sure that the village was ready to fight. That evil queen was not taking any babies that came from this whole night. She would not allow it.

“I am not going anywhere Branch.” Smidge took his hand and looked up at him. “We will get through this together.”

“Thank you, Smidge.” Branch hugged her and sighed. He led Smidge and Cherry down into the bunker. He was sure he wasn’t going to sleep that night. This whole night had been a nightmare.


	5. Uncomfortable Feelings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Life for Branch continues to get complicated.

The next day, Poppy talked to King Peppy about what happened. He made immediate preparations to marry Poppy and Guy Diamond together. He didn’t want anyone questioning her if she ended up pregnant. He knew that she did it out of wedlock to protect their people, but he wanted to save her trouble that might come later if anyone questioned her motives. Once everyone was gathered, Smidge walked up to King Peppy. She had an important question.

“King Peppy, I want to get married to Branch too, but he is very shy. I was wondering if you could marry us privately?” Smidge was all dressed up. She looked very hopeful.

“Yes Smidge, I can do that for you two.” King Peppy smiled at her and looked around. It looked like everyone was there, including Branch. He stood among his colony and smiled. “Thank you all for gathering here today.”

Smidge stood next to Poppy. She was there for support and was Poppy’s best friend after all.

Poppy held Guy Diamond’s hand. She was very nervous.

Guy Diamond stood next to Poppy. He was all dressed up for once and wore a small crown. He was very glad that King Peppy had approved of him as the future king.

Branch watched from the edge of the crowd. He glanced around. He could see that some of the other trolls were glancing at him and whispering. He was very uncomfortable. He was worried he would end up being banished or killed. He backed away and blended in once he was out of sight.

Cherry was with Branch and moved with him. She frowned when his hair surrounded them. She stayed quiet and looked around. She hadn’t said a word to anyone since before joining the village the night before. She was very nervous.

Once King Peppy finished the vows and declared that on Poppy’s twenty first birthday that they would take the throne as king and queen, he walked off the concert mushroom. He helped Smidge down and looked around. “Where did Branch go?” He didn’t see him.

Smidge frowned and began to look around. She looked worried. She knew some of the villagers were mad at Branch, even though the events that happened the day before were not his fault. She was really hoping no one hurt him or drove him away.

King Peppy looked around sighed. “Bring him to me when you find him Smidge. I want to talk to him anyway.”

Smidge turned to Poppy and gave her a hug. “I will be back. Congratulations…” She began looking for Branch. She hoped he was alright.

Branch watched as everyone started to depart. He took Cherry’s hand and sighed. He had a feeling she was scared. She was breathing a little hard. “You’re safe. I won’t let anyone hurt you.” He whispered. He saw Smidge walking in his direction. He resided his hair and waited for her to get closer. Once she was closer, he walked over quietly. “Are you alright?” He could see that she was worried.

“There you are. I was worried about you.” Smidge took his hand. “King Peppy wants to talk to you.” She began walking towards him.

Branch hesitated but followed her. He was really nervous. He kept a strong hold of Cherry’s hand. He was going to protect her with his life. The poor girl deserved the best life possible after living with their evil mother for eight years.

Cherry glanced around and winced when she saw questioning eyes fall upon her. She closed her eyes, fearing that they might hurt her.

Smidge approached King Peppy and looked up at him. She was excited about getting married, but a little nervous about what he wanted to talk to Branch about.

“Branch, thank you for coming over. I want to thank you for last night. Your actions saved my village and saved my daughter from heartache. She was really worried that you would mate with her. It sounds like your mother has an evil presence. Creek says it is one he has never seen before. I plan to prepare my people for war. I will need your help. You know her more than anyone. We need to know her strengths and weaknesses. She will go down.” King Peppy put his hand on Branch’s shoulder. “Smidge wants to marry you. Take her hand. I will make it so right now.”

Branch looked surprised. King Peppy’s reaction was way better then he was expecting. He took Smidge’s hand and looked up at King Peppy.

Smidge squeezed Branch’s hand and smiled softly.

“I bond you two as a mated couple. From this day on, you will both be royal warriors. I trust you with the safety of our colony.” King Peppy looked between them. “I am counting on you both. I know you won’t let me down.”

“Thank you.” Branch bowed his head to his king.

Smidge smiled at Branch and pulled him in for a kiss. She then turned to King Peppy and smiled. “We won’t let you down.”

Branch kissed her back and looked at King Peppy. “We will not let her win.”

King Peppy smiled and looked down at Cherry. “Who is this? I don’t recognize her.” He frowned, seeing she was in an old worn out dress. “We need to get you some nice clothes.”

Cherry avoided eye contact. She was very nervous.

“I believe she is my sister, but she hasn’t said a word. She was with my mother when she showed up yesterday. She threatened to kill her, so I grabbed her up the moment I got a chance.” Branch gave Cherry’s hand a gentle squeeze. He knew she was scared.

“Welcome to your new home young one. You’re safe. We protect each other here.” King Peppy smiled at her. He could see that she was scared.

“He’s the king young one. He’s going to protect us.” Branch smiled at Cherry.

“My name is Cherry.” She whispered. She was very nervous but didn’t want to disrespect the king. “Thank you for accepting me.” She knelt down in respect. She was petrified.

King Peppy pulled her up and gave her a hug. “Welcome to the family Cherry.”

Smidge smiled up at Branch. She was glad that King Peppy approved of Cherry. She seemed like a sweet, but shy girl.

Branch sighed in relief. He was so glad that Cherry was welcomed as part of the family. He remembered that when he was her age, King Peppy had done the same thing to him.


	6. Lots Of Babies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A month and a half have gone by and everyone is checked to see who got pregnant.

Branch was getting ready to take Smidge to the medical pod. It had been a month and a half since his mother suddenly showed up and made him and the snack pack mate. He was nervous. He had a feeling he was pregnant and was pretty sure Smidge was too. Both had been hugging trashcans the last week.

Cherry was reading quietly. She didn’t talk much but had relaxed a little bit. She was extremely advanced in reading and was going through one of the medical books. She was very curious.

Smidge was all ready to go and took Branch’s hand. She headed for the elevator shaft. She wanted to know for sure if she was pregnant. She was tired of puking, but it would be understandable if she was having a baby.

“Are you coming Cherry?” Branch asked as he walked with Smidge.

“No, I’m OK.” Cherry flipped to the next page and blinked a few times, seeing a graphic drawing of surgery. She cringed and flipped past it.

Branch sighed softly and made the elevator shaft go up. He was a little hesitate to leave her alone, but she did seem like an independent kid. He recalled being that way at her age. Once upstairs, he left the bunker and headed for the medical pod.

At the medical pod, the whole snack pack had gathered. Not all of them felt sick to their stomachs, but most of them didn’t feel right. They were all there to get checked too.

Princess Poppy was the first one to get checked. She held Guy Diamond’s hand and smiled at him. She had warmed up to the idea of having a baby. This was going to be the future of the colony. He or she would rule them all in about twenty-one years.

Mama Goldie, the colony’s most experienced medical troll, inspected Princess Poppy’s belly. She could feel the slight swelling of a pod. She smiled at Poppy and looked up. “You’re pregnant. Congratulations.” She was happy for their future queen.

Guy Diamond smiled and kissed her. He was excited. “Can I have a pregnancy check too please?” He hadn’t felt sick, but he didn’t want to assume he was not pregnant.

Poppy kissed Guy Diamond back and smiled. She was excited.

Mama Goldie ran her hands along Guy Diamond’s belly and found he had a pod within him as well. “Yes, you’re pregnant too.” She looked concerned, knowing the circumstances behind the child’s conception.

“Good, our little one will have a sibling to play with.” Guy Diamond smiled and put his hand on his belly. He wasn’t worried about it.

Poppy smiled and hugged Guy Diamond. She was glad that he accepted his pod.

The next to be checked was Biggie. He held Mr. Dinkles close. He was really hoping he hadn’t gotten pregnant.

“I don’t feel a pod Biggie.” Mama Goldie helped him up and smiled.

Biggie sighed in relief and glanced at Cooper before heading home. He wasn’t sure he wanted to stick around and find out if Cooper was pregnant or not.

Cooper watched him go and then laid down. He looked a little nervous.

Mama Goldie checked him. “I don’t feel a pod in you either Cooper.”

Cooper sat up and sighed in relief. He walked over and stood by Poppy. The bunker mating session had been weird, and he didn’t want to have a child right now.

Branch arrived with Smidge and frowned, when he saw the snack pack was there, except for Biggie. He looked down at Smidge and sighed.

Creek was the next to be checked. Mama Goldie found he had a swollen pod within him. “You’re pregnant Creek.”

Creek smiled and looked at DJ Suki. He sighed and nodded. “Thank you, Mama Goldie.” He grabbed DJ’s hand and squeezed it. He was hoping she was pregnant. They had really begun to bond the last month and a half.

Mama Goldie checked DJ and smiled at her. “You’re pregnant too DJ.”

DJ Suki turned and kissed Creek. She was glad she was having a baby with him.

Satin and Chenille were checked next. They looked nervous. Neither of them wanted kids. They were always so busy sewing for the colony.

Mama Goldie checked them and looked up. “Satin, you’re not pregnant, however Chenille is.”

Satin sighed and held Chenille’s hand. She was worried about her sister. “We will make this work sis.”

Chenille sighed and put her hand on her belly. She glanced at Fuzzbert. She was not happy about this.

Fuzzbert sighed as he was examined next.

“No pod.” Mama Goldie smiled softly. She was glad that not all these kids were pregnant, but they all looked stressed out.

Fuzzbert moved over to Poppy. He was glad he was not pregnant.

Smidge was next. Mama inspected her belly. “You’re pregnant as well, Smidge.”

Branch gulped. He was really nervous now. He had a feeling Smidge was going to have the cursed child. He knew she would be protecting the baby with her life. He looked down at his belly when Mama Goldie inspected it. 

Mama Goldie looked up at Branch. “You’re pregnant too Branch. It’s a little larger then it should be, so I suspect twins.”

Smidge laughed nervously. She was not expecting that and thought Mama Goldie was joking.

Branch groaned and closed his eyes tightly. Of course, he was pregnant with twins. He looked over at Creek and cursed internally.

Creek put his hand over his mouth and tried not to laugh. Twins ran on his side of the family.

Poppy couldn’t contain herself. She began to giggle.

“I’m going to laugh at you back Poppy if you have twins too.” Branch grumbled and crossed his arms. He was not amused.

Smidge looked between them. She frowned, realizing Mama Goldie wasn’t joking. She looked nervous now. That would mean they would have three kids at once. She hoped it would work out. That was a lot of babies for first time parents.


	7. Hanging Out With Branch

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Poppy has a talk with Branch.

Not long after the pregnancy checks, Poppy went to get Biggie. She was worried that he had ran off but wasn’t surprised. She knew he had been nervous since the Willow incident. Once they had him, they headed for Branch’s bunker.

Poppy knocked on the door. “Branch? Are you in there?!”

Smidge was the one that answered the door. She grinned and let them all in. “He’s down at the bottom of the bunker talking to Cherry.”

“Oh good, let’s go talk to him.” Poppy walked over to the elevator shaft and waited until they were all on. She headed down.

Branch looked up when he heard their voices. He frowned and grumbled that he was not thrilled that Smidge let them in…again…

As soon as they were down, Poppy smirked and looked at Branch. “Grab him boys.”

Creek and Guy Diamond grabbed Branch and tied him up. They hung him upside down and smirked as he squirmed.

“What the hell?!” Branch glared at them. “I’m pregnant! What’s the meaning of this?!” He was not amused at all.

“Yeah, and your point is? Half of us are also pregnant no thanks to your mother. You better start talking. I want to know all your secrets. You have obvious hid a lot from us. We want to know if there is anything else, we need to worry about.” Poppy wanted to make sure that Branch wasn’t evil too. She had been thinking this through and didn’t want her colony to be in danger.

Cherry watched from behind a chair. She wasn’t sure what was going on, and her brother was being hung upside down. She was worried they would hang her too and torture her.

Smidge had a smug look on her face. She actually found this quite arousing. This was giving her ideas.

Branch wriggled a bit and sighed. “If you are worried, then why am I still here? You would have offed me after my mother attacked.”

“You saved a child, you didn’t rape any of us, and I don’t want to upset Smidge. I’m still worried. I am not sure I can trust you.” Poppy had her arms crossed.

“Of course, I saved Cherry. I know my mother. She would have tortured her and made her do things she didn’t want to do. And I wouldn’t have never raped any of you.” Branch looked over at Smidge. He saw that she was amused. He sighed and looked over at Poppy. “I didn’t do anything bad when I was a kid, nor have I done anything bad here. I have spent all my time collecting survival supplies, making potions and medications, reading and writing, and hoping my mom would never find me.”

“Why did you have us down in the bunker that day? I have a feeling you trapped us on purpose.” Poppy could see that he had been very busy down here the last ten years, but she couldn’t be too cautious. It was very suspicious.

“I don’t like thunder.” Branch grumbled. He glared at Smidge when she started to giggle.

“Fair enough.” Poppy looked at Creek. “Can you tell me who among you three is carrying the evil child?”

Creek nodded and looked at himself. His baby seemed safe. He looked at Branch. His two babies appeared good too. He frowned when he looked at Smidge. “I sense great evil growing within Smidge.” He squirmed a bit when he saw Smidge’s aura flare dark red with extreme anger.

“If any of you think you are killing my child, I will kill you!” Smidge snapped. She was not amused. She knew Branch had threatened the evil child’s life. She didn’t want her baby to die.

“Calm down Smidge. Your baby might not have to die. We will work with him or her. We should be able to condition the little one to be nice.” Poppy looked confident.

Branch sighed softly. He was not so sure, but he was hoping for Smidge that Poppy was right. “Can I come down now? I feel sick and would rather not puke while upside down.”

Smidge mumbled that she was enjoying him being upside down.

Creek and Guy Diamond untied him. Once he was free, Branch ran off to his bathroom.

Poppy turned to the snack pack. “Now, I want to make sure everyone is going to be alright with raising your babies. If not, we need to start making arrangements now.”

They all looked at each other and then at Poppy. No one seemed to object having a baby at this time.

“OK, good.” Poppy walked over to Cherry. She could see that she was scared. “Are you alright?”

Cherry scrambled away from Poppy and hid behind the couch. Seeing Branch hung upside down had terrified her.

Poppy frowned and knelt so that she was not as scary. “It’s alright Cherry. You’re safe.”

Smidge went around and hugged her. “It’s alright Cherry. You’re safe.”

Cherry resisted the hug and cringed. She was scared.

Smidge let her go and frowned.

Poppy frowned and watched the girl run out of the room. “I think we scared her.” She felt bad.

Branch came back in, just in time to see Cherry run out. “What happened?”

“I think seeing you tied up scared her.” Smidge looked worried. “I have a bad feeling your mother was extremely mean to her.

“Yeah, mom tied me up more then once like that. She probably did it to Cherry too.” Branch felt bad. He hadn’t liked being tied up either, but he knew that Poppy wasn’t going to hurt him. Cherry was still new, and he knew she was still jumpy. He had a bad feeling she was abused. He had been. Willow was a very mean mother.

“I’m sorry Branch. I didn’t know.” Poppy got up and sighed. She hadn’t meant to scare the young trolling.

Cherry curled up in her closest. She knew she was in a much safer place, but that was scary. She hugged a blanket to her and frowned. She hoped they would never tie her up like that.


	8. A Friendly Nut

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Branch and Smidge convinces Cherry to leave the bunker for a little while.

A month after finding out that they were both expecting, Branch and Smidge had decided that Cherry really needed to get out of the bunker. She had been refusing to leave the bunker, and they were concerned that she wasn’t getting enough sunshine. 

Branch had some harvesting to do, so when he was all set to go, he handed Cherry a backpack and smiled. “Let’s go for a walk.”

“I don’t want to.” Cherry frowned and gulped hard. She was very worried that her mother would return and snatch her up. She feared she was going to be killed.

“I need help Cherry. We need to go.” Branch smiled and offered her hand. “I promise I won’t let anything happen.”

“I’ll be with you two as well. It’ll be alright.” Smidge put on her backpack and smiled warmly to the timid eight-year-old.

“Wicked witch of the west will get me.” Cherry whispered. She had been hearing Branch call their mother that.

“We won’t let her. Will we Smidge?” Branch grinned and looked down at Smidge.

“She will have to get through us both first.” Smidge smiled and gently nudged Cherry towards the elevator shaft.

“Alright…” Cherry put her backpack on and headed for the elevator shaft. She got on and began to shake. She was nervous.

Branch followed Cherry and headed up once Smidge was safely on board.

Smidge took Cherry’s hand as they went up the elevator.

Once they were out of the bunker, Branch headed for the blackberry bush. He had been craving them. He ate one before he started to collect them.

“You are going to turn into a blackberry.” Smidge teased as she helped him pick some.

Cherry looked around as she helped pick the blackberries. She was petrified.

A green glitter troll named Fern was on her way to the blackberry bush with her ten-year-old son, Pistachio. She smiled at Branch, Smidge, and Cherry, and then began picking some.

Pistachio looked like his mother, but with light green hair instead of green hair. He smiled and picked a berry. He sat down on a rock and began to eat it. He was hungry.

Cherry watched Pistachio curiously. She hadn’t realized there were trollings here around the same age as she was. She got her backpack full, and then went to eat her own blackberry. She liked them as much as Branch did.

Once he was done, Branch sat down and ate another one. He was hungry.

“Branch, if you eat anymore of those today, you are going to turn black.” Smidge picked one and began eating it too.

Branch ignored Smidge. He wasn’t worried about it. He knew how healthy blackberries were. Once he was done, he got up and picked some leaves off the blackberry bush. He was going to use them for tea.

“What do the blackberry leaves do?” Smidge asked. She had been learning a lot about herbs and medicine since moving in with him.

“It can be used for a lot of things. I just like it for tea.” Branch grabbed a few more leaves and put them in his bag. “It can prevent cancer, help with pain, treat high blood sugar, and helps rinse out toxins.”

Smidge smiled and began picking some leaves. Sounded good to her. “We will be drying them out then?”

Branch nodded and put his backpack back on.

Pistachio finished his blackberry, then went and sat by Cherry. “I haven’t met you before. My name is Pistachio.”

Cherry squirmed shyly. “I’m Cherry.” She avoided eye contact. 

“Nice to meet you Cherry.” Pistachio pulled her into a hug and smiled.

Cherry tensed up a little when she was hugged. She wasn’t sure about this. She looked at Branch, who was watching quietly. He didn’t seem alarmed or worried. She tried to relax. She made no advance as far as returning the hug.

Smidge smiled at the trollings. “Relax Cherry, Pistachio is a very nice young man.”

Pistachio let he hug go and smiled. “Are you going to be joining me in class when it starts in a week?”

Cherry looked at Branch, who was nodding. She nodded and gulped nervously.

“I can’t wait.” Pistachio hugged her again.

“Time to head home.” Fern smiled at her son and then headed home. She had collected what she needed.

“See you later Cherry.” Pistachio followed his mom. He had a big smile on his face. He loved making new friends.

Cherry watched him, and then walked over to Branch and stood by him. She was still not sure what to think of this. She was still learning that these trolls were safe, and that she was not in danger.


	9. A Meeting With Branch

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Poppy and Guy Diamond visit with Branch and Smidge to go over plans for when Willow returns.

About a month and a half later, when harvest was over, Poppy made her way towards Branch’s bunker. She had arranged a meeting with the survivalist. They needed to go through plans of what they were going to do when Willow showed up. She wanted to make sure they were ready. She knocked on the door and waited to be let in.

Guy Diamond was with her. He had his hand on his baby bump. His little one was awake, and squirming. He found it very odd, feeling a little life moving and kicking inside him.

Smidge was in one of the upper level rooms. She had just come in from being outside. She had a demonic look on her face as she slipped a box into her hair. She walked over to the door and let Poppy and Guy Diamond in. “Just you two today?” She was a little surprised that no one else had come to this meeting.

“Yes, just us.” Poppy walked in and walked over to the elevator shaft. She was eager to get started. There was a lot of planning to do, and they only had eight more months before Willow was supposed to come back.

Guy Diamond walked to the elevator shaft and stood by Poppy. He smiled at Smidge. “You look like you are up to something.”

“Me?” Smidge laughed. “I’m always up to something.”

Poppy had the elevator shaft go downward. She grinned, knowing Smidge was probably going to make Branch squirm. It was fun watching him squirm.

Branch heard the elevator shaft coming down. He was drinking coffee and reading through war techniques. He had been preparing himself in his spare time. He only relaxed at bedtime. He thought he heard Poppy and Guy Diamond, but was starting to get use to Smidge letting her friends in. She wasn’t giving him much choice.

“Branch, you shouldn’t be drinking coffee.” Guy Diamond scolded him as they reached the bottom level. He didn’t look amused.

“Yeah, Mama Goldie told us no more coffee until the babies are born.” Poppy walked over and took his mug and coffee pot.

Smidge smirked and walked over to Branch. She got behind him and pulled the box out of her hair.

“Hey! Give me back my coffee…” Branch grumbled and followed Poppy. “I was only having a little bit and I made it light.”

“You should be drinking tea if you must have something other then water or juice.” Guy Diamond went into the kitchen and began warming up tea.

Poppy put the dishes in the sink and turned. She crossed her arms and frowned. “No more coffee. You need to think about your twins. They need to be born healthy.”

Smidge grabbed a worm out of the box and got behind Branch. She put it in his shorts and backed away. She had a huge smirk on her face.

Branch was about to protest further when he felt Smidge grab his pants. He held his pants and moved forward, thinking she was going to try and remove them. He felt something cold and slimy in is pants after she let go. He’s eyes went wide as he tried to fish it out. “Smidge!” He squirmed uncomfortably. He couldn’t reach it. He hid behind the counter and pulled his pants down. He pulled out the worm and pulled up his pants. He glared at Smidge and began chasing her.

Smidge giggled and ran away from him.

Cherry had seen Branch without pants. She had only seen his buttocks, but it was weird. She put her hand over here eyes and frowned. “Oops…” She turned and went back to her room. She figured it might be a good idea to do homework instead of trying to figure out what her brother and sister in law were doing with their friends.

Poppy’s eyes went wide. She snorted and began to giggle. It was quite the sight seeing a pregnant Branch chase around a pregnant Smidge.

Guy Diamond set the tea aside and watched Branch chase Smidge around. He was laughing loudly.

Branch caught Smidge with his hair, gently, and glared at her. “I should make you eat this worm…” He moved her closer and dangled it above her head.

Smidge smirked and wriggled in his grasp. She stretched her hair and grabbed the worm. She moved it towards his pants.

“Smidge! I’m warning you!” Branch let her go and grasped his pants. He didn’t want the worm in his pants again.

“Alright, alright, that is enough. We actually came down to talk to you two about Willow.” Poppy was amused, but she did want to get down to business.

Branch turned but kept his hands over his buttocks. He was not taking chances. “Yes, we do need to go over that. She is not going to be easy to take down. There was a war in our colony when I was five. A civil war. Half the colony tried to take her down, but she poisoned the food supply. She killed over half the colony overnight.”

“That is a huge problem. We will have to keep an eye on the water and food supply so that we don’t have problems.” Poppy pulled out a notebook and wrote down notes. “Is there anything else she could try to do?”

Smidge put the worm back in the box and put the box in her hair. She decided she would have more fun with her new little pet later.

Guy Diamond looked at Branch and frowned. This troll sounded insane.

“Yeah, when I was six, she got a group of small children to go down a small cave to retrieve salt. I was among them. Some of them slipped into a pool of hot water. I fell in too but managed to escape with my life. The others that fell in didn’t make it. She beat me for nearly dying that day, but she knew it was down there.” Branch shivered. “I couldn’t sit for weeks between the burns and her abuse.” He sighed and frowned. “I heard stories too. What you can imagine an insane troll doing, she found a way to make it ten times worse.”

Poppy cringed and shook her head. “I’m sorry Branch.” She wrote down more notes and sighed. “Sounds like she is going to be hard to take down. Do you recall anything she has as a weakness?”

“She’s allergic to onions. I never saw how bad. She was always yelling that anyone who put onions in her food would be beheaded.” Branch shook his head and shot a glanced at Smidge. She was still behind him, and he really didn’t want that worm in his pants.

“Good to know.” Poppy wrote that down too.

Guy Diamond grinned. “Might have to lace some glitter bombs with onions. Might be a fatal hit.”

“Keep in mind she might bring more then herself. We might be facing most of my old colony. It is small, but my mother is desperate. I know how much she wants our child.” Branch gave Smidge a concerned look. If Willow got a hold of their baby, there could be major problems for them all.

“She won’t have the baby. The baby is mine.” Smidge narrowed her eyes and clenched her fists. The baby wasn’t due for another two months, but she was already fiercely protective.

“She won’t have any of the babies.” Poppy shook her head and frowned. “I won’t allow it.”

They continued to plan through the afternoon, until Guy Diamond realized it was late. He walked with Poppy home before it got dark and dangerous out. He wasn’t taking risks on her safety, or the safety of the future heir and his unborn baby.


	10. Birthday Surprise

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The snack pack gathers to celebrate Guy Diamond’s nineteenth birthday.

Smidge had invited all her friends over. She knew it was Guy Diamond’s birthday and wanted them all to have one more celebration before they all got busy having babies. They were all five and a half months along. She was round in the midsection, and much to her relief, it appeared she was carrying a dwarf sized baby, which meant she should be able to deliver him or her on her own.

Branch was wrapped up in a blanket on the couch. He had been bleeding lightly and had a feeling his twins were going to be born sometime very soon. He was taking it easy, hoping not to deliver during the birthday party. He was a little amused to find out that Guy was a day older then he was. He was turning nineteen tomorrow. He had never told anyone that he was a midwinter baby.

The entire snack pack arrived at Branch’s bunker. Poppy knocked on the door. 

Smidge walked over to the elevator shaft and headed up. She was excited for the birthday party, although with seven pregnant trolls around, she figured games were going to be light.

Willow was right behind the snack pack. She grinned, seeing that five of them were round in the midsection. It appeared everything had gone according to plan. She had another troll with her. She had a firm hold of her, and took a knife, running it along her throat. She dropped her to the ground and watched as the snack pack turned to her. “If any of you think you can get away with holding back that firstborn, this will happen to you!” She took off, disappearing into the forest.

Smidge opened the door in time to see Willow disappear. She frowned, seeing an injured troll not far from where they stood. “Oh my god!” She put her hands to her cheeks. She looked worried.

The young female gasped for air and held her hand to her throat. She looked petrified.

Guy Diamond’s eyes went wide as he watched Willow disappear. He started to go after her, but Poppy grabbed him by the arm.

“Don’t! You are not armed and your due to have your baby in two weeks.” Poppy hurried over to the female troll and put pressure on her neck wound. She was worried that the young female would die. “Biggie, help me…”

Biggie walked over and picked up the young female. Poppy kept pressure on her wound as they hurried into Branch’s bunker. They all headed down the elevator shaft together.

Smidge waited until they were all on, and then headed down. “Branch! Get your surgical kit ready! We have an emergency!” She winced, feeling a contraction. She put her hand on her belly and closed her eyes.

Branch heard the urgency in Smidge’s voice. He got up and headed for his medical bag. He pulled out his surgical kit and frowned when he saw them coming down with a young teal colored female. His eyes went wide, recognizing her immediately. “Get her on the couch! I will save her…”

Biggie walked over to the couch and set her down. He stepped back and looked at his clothes. They were drenched with blood.

Branch went to work on fixing the young female’s neck wound. “Hang in there Marjoram…”

Smidge led Biggie to the bathroom, so he could clean up. She had her free hand on her belly. She kept quiet about it for now.

Poppy ran her hand through Marjoram’s dark green hair. She felt awful for this poor girl.

Branch worked as fast as possible. He got her trachea closed and made sure her blood vessels were closed first. He didn’t want her to drown in her own blood. “Lay on your side and cough up the blood.”

Marjoram coughed up blood. She was scared. Tears ran down her cheeks. She didn’t want to die.

Cherry came in, curious about the commotion. She gasped and ran over. She hugged into Marjoram tight. “What happened?!”

Guy Diamond grabbed Cherry and pulled her away gently. “Easy sweetheart, she is wounded.”

Once Marjoram was back on her back, Branch finished stitching her neck closed. He was able to save her. He gently wrapped her neck and looked up. “This is Marjoram. She was my friend when I was growing up.” He put his hand on his belly and frowned, feeling a contraction.

“Branch?” Smidge walked over. She had her hand on her belly. “Our baby is coming.” She leaned into him and breathed.

Poppy looked among them, and saw that Smidge was not the only one that was in pain. Guy Diamond was also holding his belly, along with DJ Suki, Creek, and Chenille. She gulped and put her own hand on her belly, feeling a contraction. “Uh oh…”

Branch looked between them all and frowned. It appeared they were all in labor. He gently took Smidge in his arms and headed for the bed. He bit his bottom lip, feeling another contraction.

Smidge hugged into Branch and winced. “You shouldn’t be carrying me. You are going to go into labor too.”

“Too late, I’m having contractions too.” Branch set her down and grabbed some blankets. He set them beside her and frowned. “Hold on my love. I need to see if anyone knows how to deliver babies.” He headed out of the room and looked between them all. “Do any of you have experience with delivering babies?” His eyes widened when they all shook their heads. He cursed and closed his eyes. “I am going to need help…”

Fuzzbert was already getting to work on making the ground more comfortable for everyone. He was quiet, knowing that Chenille was having his baby.

Cooper helped Fuzzbert.

Poppy leaned forward on the couch. She breathed through a contraction and looked up at Guy Diamond. “I’m scared…”

Guy Diamond stood by Poppy and held her hand. He squeezed it, feeling his own contraction.

Biggie came out and frowned, seeing that all his pregnant friends were holding their bellies. He tucked Mr. Dinkles close and looked between them all. He wasn’t sure what to do.

Smidge walked back out and hugged into Branch. “I want to be with my friends. We are going to need your help Branch. You have the most medical experience.”

Cherry looked at them all and frowned. There was a lot going on, and she was worried about Marjoram. She stayed by her and held her hand.

Marjoram had passed out, exhausted from blood loss.

Once the living space was set up, Smidge laid down. She was getting close. “Branch!” She gasped, feeling the baby was close to emerging.

Branch’s eyes went wide. He removed her blood-stained panties and gapped his mouth open. This was not like in the books he read. He had never delivered a baby before, but he had no choice. Their baby was coming now. He grabbed the tiny newborn and began cleaning him up with a blanket. He was light blue green with royal blue hair. He was dwarf sized and began to cry right away. He gently gave the baby to Smidge and breathed hard. His contractions were getting closer together. He turned, feeling Creek’s hand on his shoulder. He looked nervous. The first baby was Smidge’s, which confirmed Creek’s suspicions. He could see that Creek was in a lot of pain.

Creek gave Branch a reassuring look. He sat down beside him and breathed. “We will all get through this together.”

Poppy nodded and eased to the ground next to him. “We are in this together.”

DJ Suki sat by Creek and leaned into Creek. She was scared.

Satin and Chenille sat by DJ Suki and Creek. Chenille was breathing hard.

Guy Diamond sat by Poppy and put his hand on her hand. He remained calm, despite feeling his own strong contractions.

“Hello Twig…” Smidge held her son close, naming him before Branch named him something awful. She took a few deep breaths. She sat up and looked between the six that were in labor. She was really worried that they were going to snatch her baby and try to kill him.

“I’m going to need help.” Branch breathed hard, feeling strong contractions. He was getting close. He began pulling his pants off. “Biggie, help me?” He was worried about delivering his twins on his own.

Biggie went to grab the baby but cringed at the sight of all the blood. He backed away and shook his head. He was freaked out by all this.

“Damn it, Biggie!” Branch snapped, feeling the first of his twins emerge. He reached down, catching his son. He grabbed a blanket and began cleaning him. He was blue green in color, with Creek’s two-toned hair. Branch was shaking as he handed the baby to Smidge. He reached down and caught his second twin as he was born. This one was also blue green, with royal blue hair. He began cleaning him up. He held his son close and groaned. He was very tired.

“Ow…” Chenille removed her panties. “Help…” She gasped, feeling her own baby emerging.

Satin reached over and grabbed her niece as she was born. She was orange like Fuzzbert, but had blue, pink, and green three toned hair. She took a blanket and began cleaning her up, like she had seen Branch do with his babies. She gave her sister her daughter and smiled. “She’s really cute.”

Chenille looked at her daughter and smiled softly. “I want to call you Vanilla.”

DJ Suki was the next one to deliver. She gasped and hugged into Creek, feeling the baby emerge.

Branch gently set his second born down and caught DJ Suki’s baby. She cleaned the little one up, and then gave her to her mom. 

DJ Suki held her baby girl and smiled down at her. She was a pretty shade of purple with two toned orange and green hair. “Creek, I want to name her Melody.”

Creek smiled softly and held his belly. “I love that name.” He kissed her gently.

Guy Diamond watched the time and chuckled. “Looks like about half the kids share my birthday. It’s almost midnight.” He was amused. It was just Creek, Poppy, and him that were left to have babies. He groaned, feeling a strong contraction.

“The way you are breathing, you might be sharing your birthday with your baby too.” Poppy smiled softly, and then took a deep breath.

Branch saw Creek, Poppy, and Guy Diamond were not ready quite yet, so he turned to his twins and looked at them. “I think I will name the first one Basil and the second one Sky.” He looked at Smidge and reached in for a kiss. “Did I hear Twig for our baby?” He smiled at her, realizing she had named the little one after him. He didn’t mind.

Smidge kissed him back and glared at him. “Yes, Twig. And if you try killing him, I will have your head on a silver platter.” She held her baby and his firstborn close and realized all three of their babies were a beautiful shade of light blue with a slight hint of green. She wondered if that was Branch’s true color. She had never seen his true colors before.

Guy Diamond was the next to deliver. He reached down, grabbing his daughter as she was born. Branch handed him a blanket. The little one looked like Creek, but there was white replaced where Creek’s hair was blue. “You look like your daddy. I’m going to name you River.” He looked at Poppy, hoping that was alright.

Poppy looked at the time, seeing it was one minute until midnight. “Told you she would share your birthday. I love the name River.” She breathed and held her belly. She was wondering if her baby would be a boy or a girl. She had already talked to her dad and he had reassured it would be her baby that would take the throne, regardless if Guy Diamond gave birth before her or not. The baby had to have her blood. “I think I am getting close.”

Branch moved closer and got a blanket ready. “This one will share my birthday.” He smiled as he grabbed the tiny princess as she was born. She cleaned her up and gave her to Poppy.

Poppy smiled and held her daughter close. “Guy, our little princess will rule the colony one day.” She smiled and looked down at her. “What do you think about Jewel?”

“Jewel is a great name for your little princess.” Guy Diamond smiled down at their little pink glittery daughter. He was a proud daddy.

Creek held his belly and groaned. He barely got his pants off, when a lavender baby boy was born. He had royal blue hair. He picked up his baby and began cleaning him with a blanket. “Hello little one.” He smiled at DJ Suki. “We need Rhythm to go with our Melody.”

DJ Suki smiled and nodded. “I agree…”

As the last baby was born, all eyes went on Branch. Creek was the first to hand him his baby. Satin handed him Vanilla next. Guy Diamond set River by Sky. Poppy set her baby by River. Then DJ Suki set her daughter by Jewel.

“You get to raise all these babies now Branch. Your mother made us all have babies we were not ready for.” Poppy crossed her arms and glared at him. “We are all under twenty and this is too much.”

“What?!” Branch’s eyes went wide. Between his twins, Smidge’s baby, and everyone else’s babies, there were eight little ones. He cringed and looked down. That was a lot of newborns to take care of. “I didn’t ask for this either…”

Smidge had trouble keeping a straight face. She was trying really hard not to laugh.

Cherry looked at them all with wide eyes. She had watched the whole thing without saying a word. She hadn’t left Marjoram’s side.

“We’re kidding Branch. We know it is not your fault. We do need to work together though. We will all be raising these kids. All of them in here. Your mother scared me, and I am not having any of these babies leave this bunker until the threat of her coming to harm them or kidnap them is gone. Especially after what happened today…” Poppy gently picked up Jewel and held her close. She was already very protective of her baby.

Everyone picked up their babies. They agreed with Poppy. They were not leaving. They were not going to risk their babies.

“Alright, that is fair.” Branch held his twins close and eased to the ground, so he was laying down. He was exhausted. He helped his boys feed and closed his eyes. He completely understood the protectiveness. He was very worried about his three sons himself. He didn’t want his mother getting a hold of any of them.


	11. A Shy Herb

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Branch talks to Marjoram and gets some important information.

After getting some much-needed rest, Branch was up making coffee. He hadn’t been able to drink it for almost two months and thought he would get away with it now that Basil and Sky were born. Especially since it was his birthday. He was hopeful. He had left his twins by Smidge. He had just got done changing and feeding them, so he hoped they would be alright for a little bit, so he could have some coffee.

Marjoram woke up, smelling coffee. She sat up and held her head. She had slept for over eight hours. The last thing she remembered was Branch hovering over her, stitching her neck. She touched her neck gently and winced. She was very sore. She got up and walked over to the kitchen. “Branch?” Her voice was raspy and irritated from the blood. “Is that really you?”

Branch smiled softly and nodded. He gave her a mug of coffee and sat down. He winced, sore from giving birth. “I’m happy to see you are still alive.”

“I am happy to see you are alive too. For a long time, I thought you had died. It wasn’t until Willow started arranging for everyone to prepare for war that I knew you were still alive.” Marjoram winced and looked down. “I started refusing to take part in training, which is why I am here. She told me she was going to use me as a warning.”

“That was very brave. You know refusing to follow orders causes her to be angry.” Branch sighed and gulped. “I am guessing the war she is preparing for is to attack us here?”

“Yes, she is preparing the whole village to attack this village in about six months.” Marjoram put her hand over her belly. “I had no choice but to stop. I’m pregnant, and I was no longer comfortable making the moves she demanded we do.”

“She is an idiot.” Branch looked at her belly. She did have a little bump. He frowned and looked up at her. “Is your mate still alive?”

Marjoram shook her head and bit her bottom lip. “Locust tried to stop Willow when I was being dragged away. She didn’t listen when he tried to tell her that I was pregnant and that was why I couldn’t help.” Tears filled her eyes. “He’s gone…”

Branch winced. Locust was also one of his friends growing up. He had helped him escape. He closed his eyes. “He was extremely brave. I’m so sorry.”

“Branch!” Smidge scolded. “You’re not supposed to be drinking coffee! You’re nursing!” Smidge walked over and put her hands on her hips. She had just woken up. She had left Twig to snuggle with his brothers.

Marjoram startled badly and looked at Smidge with wide eyes.

Branch startled as well and looked at Smidge. “I thought I could after I had the babies.” He grumbled and pushed the coffee aside. “I only drank half a mug.” He sighed heavily.

Smidge sighed and shook her head. “No, not until the babies are weaned.” She looked up at Marjoram. “You’re awake. I was worried about you.”

Marjoram closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Smidge had scared her. She glanced down at the yellow dwarf troll. 

“She just got done telling me that Willow is getting ready for war. We need to figure out a way to warn everyone in the village. I know Poppy won’t want us leaving the bunker.” Branch looked over at Poppy, who was snuggled up to Guy Diamond and sound asleep.

“I think she meant she didn’t want the babies to leave. I can go.” Smidge walked over to grab her coat.

“Oh no, you are not leaving. You just had your baby yesterday evening. You need to rest.” Branch followed her and grabbed her hand.

“I’m fine. A little sore, but I have been in worse pain.” Smidge wriggled her hand free and headed for the elevator shaft. She headed up without giving him any opportunity to stop her.

Branch groaned and watched her go up. He was really hoping for her safety that she would be alright. “You’re so stubborn!”

Guy Diamond woke up when Branch yelled up at Smidge. He looked around sleepily and saw Branch by the rising elevator shaft. He got up. “Did Smidge just leave?”

Poppy woke up too and looked around sleepily.

“Yes, she did, and she didn’t listen to my protests.” Branch heard the front door slam shut. He sighed and looked towards Marjoram, before looking over at Poppy. “We need to prepare for war. She is on her way to warn King Peppy.” He walked over and stole a swallow of coffee since Smidge was gone. He loved his coffee.

Guy Diamond looked concerned. “She is very stubborn. Once her mind is set, no one can persuade her from doing what she wants to do.”

Poppy sighed, worried about her bestie. She got up and held Jewel close. She walked over and snatched Branch’s mug with her free hand. She walked over to the sink and set it in there. She gave him a warning glare. “No more coffee until the babies are weaned.” She sighed and sat down by Marjoram. “My name is Poppy.”

Branch grumbled that he wanted his coffee.

“Nice to meet you.” Marjoram whispered. She was very shy.

Poppy saw she was a little round in the midsection. She grabbed the mug Marjoram had and looked her up and down. “Are you pregnant?”

Marjoram nodded slowly.

“No more coffee…” Poppy took the mug and the pot and put them in the sink. 

Marjoram winced when the mug was taken from her. She really enjoyed coffee too. She sighed and put her hand on her belly. She could feel her little one kicking.

“Tell me about yourself.” Poppy sat down beside Marjoram and began nursing Jewel.

“I’m nineteen years old. I came from a village west of here. I know Branch and Cherry. I’m pregnant. My queen tried to kill me last night.” She took a breath, feeling pain from her knife wound. “I was trained to be a warrior. I know fighting techniques. I was punished for refusing to perform. I can no longer do the movements she wanted to see because of my pod.”

Poppy shook her head and sighed. “That troll is insane. It’s amazing that any of you survive at all. How do you all keep up with the population decrease?”

“We all have large families. I don’t know one family in that village that doesn’t have a bunch of kids. She weeds out the weak ones.” Marjoram looked down and frowned. “She makes us listen. If we don’t do what we are told, we are all either beaten or killed. She has also kidnapped from local villages. People she feels she can manipulate. Warriors or children of warriors. I’ve seen so many frightened children. I tried hard to keep the children safe.”

“You’re very brave.” Poppy shifted Jewel and pat her back so she could burp.

“I don’t feel brave.” Marjoram watched Poppy handle Jewel. She shifted and swallowed hard. “Sorry…excuse me.” She hurried to look for the bathroom. She really needed to go to the bathroom. She hadn’t gone in quite some time.

Poppy watched her go, and then looked at Guy Diamond. “I bet there are more trolls like her in that village that are innocent and have no choice but to deal with their evil queen. I feel so bad for her.”

“She was just widowed yesterday, before her throat was sliced open.” Branch looked worried. “I have no idea how far along she is. Her bump is tiny, but her mate was the same size as Smidge, so there is a chance she could be due any time.”

“She is safe now. That’s what matters. If her baby comes, we will just have one more baby to have around as a playmate that is the same age as the other eight that were born yesterday evening, and early this morning.” Guy Diamond smiled softly.

Poppy thought for a moment and then smiled at Branch. “I recall you saying today is your birthday. So, you turn nineteen today?”

Branch nodded and smiled softly. “Yeah, Jewel and Rhythm share my birthday.”

“Happy birthday Branch.” Guy Diamond smiled and went to go grab River. She was starting to cry.

Basil started to cry as well, which got Twig and Sky crying too. 

Branch walked over and picked up Twig. He got him nursing, and then began to nurse Basil. “Hold on Sky, I will feed you in a few minutes baby boy.”

Creek sat up and yawned. He reached over and picked up Sky. He quietly began to feed him for Branch, seeing that his hands were full. “Good morning…”

“Thank you, Creek.” Branch fed his sons and sighed heavily. He had a bad feeling that this war was going to be bad. He was worried about these babies.

Smidge came back, unscathed and tired. She headed down the elevator shaft, and went to help Branch with the babies.

Marjoram came out of the bathroom and walked over to the couch. She sat down and sighed tiredly. She was still exhausted.

Poppy sat down by Marjoram and smiled at her. “How far along are you?”

“I’m four months along.” Marjoram avoided eye contact. She was very tired but didn’t want to upset Poppy or any of Branch’s friends. They all seemed friendly, but she had had a rough past. It was going to take a while for her to calm down and trust them.

“You have a little way to go. We will protect you here. There are plenty of provisions and we will get through the winter without too many issues. It’s going to be alright.” Poppy reassured her.

“Thank you Poppy.” Marjoram leaned back on the couch and began to doze off. She was hoping she could make it to term so that her throat could heal. She was one very sore mama.


	12. Lovely Heart

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Biggie makes a friend.

It had been about two months since all the little trollings were born. Marjoram was feeling much better and was helping around in the bunker as she could. She was quite round currently and was pretty sure she was going to have her baby soon. She was uncomfortable but didn’t say anything as she swept around the living space. She was in full swing nesting mode.

Branch was tending to his twins. He was starting to think there was something off with Basil. The two-month-old stared off into space when he was feeding, but lately Sky was watching him when he fed. He was worried that Basil couldn’t see, but he tried not to worry about it. Blindness did run in his family and did happen randomly. Usually no one survived it though. His family thought of blindness as a weakness. With every other generation being evil, there was no room for what they considered genetic mistakes. He thought he was just being paranoid, and it was too early to tell anyway. Basil was still so little.

Everyone now had their own rooms in the bunker. Branch had helped clear some of his storage rooms and made them into bedrooms. Everyone was settling well and were getting use to living down there.

Biggie came down into the living space and saw that Marjoram was sweeping. He walked up behind her and tried to take the broom. “I’ll get that. You should be taking it easy.”

Marjoram kept a firm hold of the broom and pulled it out of his grasp. She turned and hit him hard on the arm. She then widened her eyes and put her hand over her mouth. “Sorry…I don’t do well with anyone coming up behind me like that. I used to have to keep my guard up. It kept me alive…”

Biggie rubbed his arm and smiled softly. “You have a strong arm. I’m impressed. I just want to help you sweep. You look like you might be having your baby any day now, and you will need your strength.” 

Mr. Dinkles was on his shoulder and let out a mew.

“I’m alright. I want to clean.” Marjoram went back to sweeping. She wasn’t going to be persuaded. She was determined to get the living space clean.

Branch had heard the commotion and walked towards them with his twins tucked in his arms. “Marjoram, you should let him sweep. You don’t want to be tired. Believe me, I would know.”

Marjoram sighed and handed Biggie the broom. She went and grabbed a clothe and wet it. She began to dust instead.

Biggie began to sweep. He smiled softly when she began to dust. “That’s not resting.”

“Marjoram, go take a break. Have a snack and drink some water. My bunker is not that dirty.” Branch chuckled. He recalled being restless right before his twins were born. He had a feeling she was going to have her baby soon.

Smidge came down with Twig snuggled to her chest. She looked at Biggie and smirked, before tucking Twig into her hair. She grabbed the box she kept her pet night crawler worm in. She pulled out the slimy pet and walked up behind Biggie. She pulled his pants open and set it in his pants. She backed away and smirked.

Branch saw this and widened his eyes. He was glad he was not the victim this time, but he had a feeling Biggie wasn’t going to like that surprise.

Biggie dropped the broom and squealed. He shook his leg and wriggled his pants. He couldn’t get it to drop out. He pulled down his pants slightly, and watched it fall to the floor. He pulled his pants back up and flushed. He looked over at Smidge and frowned. “Was that necessary?!”

Marjoram saw the strange exchange and widened her eyes when she got a short glance at Biggie’s large manhood. She blushed and bit her bottom lip. She liked what she had seen.

Smidge smirked and reached down. She picked up the worm and started heading for Branch next.

“Not while I am holding the twins!” Branch glared at her. “I don’t want to drop them by accident.” He was not amused that she was heading towards him. He backed away slowly and then stretched his hair to stop her gently. “You’re a brat.”

Biggie saw the look Marjoram had made. He blushed bright and looked down shyly.

Marjoram smiled softly and went back to dusting. “Nice package Biggie.” She whispered as she walked past him.

Biggie cracked a smile but wasn’t sure what to say.

Smidge grumbled that Branch was no fun. She put her worm away, and tucked the box into her hair, next to Twig. She turned to Biggie and nudge him towards Marjoram. “He’s single.”

Marjoram blushed when Biggie bumped into her. She looked up at him and smiled. “That’s shocking…” She leaned into him, hugging him. She let out sighed. She missed Locust. It was hard to believe he had been gone two months now.

Biggie felt Marjoram’s warm embrace. He looked at Smidge and then at Marjoram. He held her and sighed. Smidge was trying to play match maker again. 

Branch tucked his twins into his hair, and then walked to the kitchen. He began making breakfast.

“His room is this way…” Smidge grabbed Marjoram’s hand and attempted to pull towards Biggie’s room.

Marjoram didn’t budge, and even shook her hand until Smidge let go. She gave Smidge a stern look of disapproval. “Back off…” She let Biggie go and put her hand over her belly.

Biggie looked between Smidge and Marjoram. He had never heard someone raise their voice to Smidge like that. He wondered how Smidge would handle that.

“Someone is hormonal.” Smidge giggled and smirked up at Marjoram. “Better go cool off. Perhaps you two should go shower instead?”

Marjoram’s cheeks flushed. “I’m six months pregnant and lost my mate two months ago. Sex is the last thing on my mind.”

“I never said you had to have sex.” Smidge giggled. “You could just cuddle.”

Biggie blushed bright. This was escalating quickly. “Smidge, she is right. Back off.” He could tell that Marjoram was tense.

Marjoram grit her teeth and moved away from them. She leaned forward over the couch and groaned. She laid down on the couch and breathed. Her discomfort was turning into intense pain. She was very tense. She had learned to hide pain well, but now she couldn’t hide it anymore. It was too intense.

“Oh…” Smidge frowned and hurried for the bedroom, realizing that Marjoram was showing signs of labor. She grabbed some blankets and hurried back. 

“I’m sorry. Smidge has no filter. She really is a nice troll.” Biggie saw her pained expression and frowned, realizing it was like when her friends were in labor. He looked up at Branch. “Branch, I think Marjoram is in labor.”

Branch walked over and gently lift Marjoram’s dress and saw blood. He gently grabbed her panties and yelped when she suddenly kicked him hard in the chin. “Damn!” He stepped back and rubbed his chin. “Please let me help…”

Marjoram breathed hard and pulled her own panties off. She grasped the sides of the couch and let out a cry as her son was born.

Branch managed to grab the baby when he was born. He took a blanket from Smidge and began cleaning the white glitter trolling up. He had dark green hair like his mama. “He is white with glitter like Locust…” He smiled softly. He missed his friend. He gave the little one to Marjoram and gave her space. She had the look like she wanted to kill. He had a feeling Smidge had made her angry.

“Well no wonder you didn’t want to go have sex.” Smidge smiled softly.

“Smidge…drop it…” Biggie sighed and smiled at Marjoram. “You did a good job.” He went back to sweeping and gave the new mother some room.

Marjoram grumbled about Smidge needing to back off. She looked at her newborn son and smiled at him. “You are very adorable.” She took a deep breath. “I think I am going to name you Winter.”

Smidge smiled at them, and then left to go check on Poppy and tell her that the new baby was here. She knew Poppy would be excited to know.

“I’m sure Locust would be proud. You did a good job Marjoram.” Branch backed away and let the new mother bond. He could tell she was in a bad mood and didn’t want to be in her way.


	13. War Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It had been a full year since Willow first attacked Troll Village.

Everyone was getting ready for war. It was one year on the very day since Willow came to the village and forced Branch to mate with the entire snack pack. Everyone who could show up, came to the center of the village. They were all on edge. Among them were almost everyone in the village, including Branch himself.

Branch was nervous. He had both twins in his hair. He hadn’t told Smidge that the babies were with him, but he hadn’t wanted to leave Basil alone, and he got fussy if he was away from Sky. He had both snuggled and held tight to his head, held fast to him with his hair. He was not going to let his mother have them. He was quietly hoping that they would remain calm and quiet.

Marjoram, Fern, all the children younger then sixteen, and anyone who was sick, pregnant, or injured were down in Branch’s bunker. King Peppy had sent them down there. He wasn’t going to risk anyone, and they were all at the highest risk of being killed or severely injured.

Right on schedule, Willow came into view of Troll Village. She smirked, seeing Branch and his new colony standing together, ready for her. She pulled out an arrow and took aim. She released, hitting Branch right in the shoulder.

Branch saw his mother draw a bow and arrow. He went to dodge, but her aim was good. She had aimed for his heart but missed thanks to his quick actions. He held him shoulder and ran to go hide. He was cursing. He was in pain, and worried about his babies. He didn’t think she would try to kill him.

Honey, one of Willow’s colony members, saw Branch. The thirty-six-year-old light-yellow troll sidestepped, and then made her way towards him. She moved swiftly and blended into her surroundings. She didn’t want her queen to notice that she was sneaking off. She knew that Willow had laced the arrows with poison, and she was very worried about young Branch.

Willow motioned her colony to attack, and then headed in the direction that Branch went. She drew arrows and shot anyone that got in her way. She hit several trolls as she made her way towards her son.

Branch found a spot under a small tree. He carefully removed the arrow, and then grabbed gauze and stuffed it into his wound. It hadn’t hit any major blood vessels, so he had time to go to his bunker and fix it. He startled when Honey suddenly approached him. 

Honey pulled out the gauze and put her hand on his wound. “It’s alright, I got it.” She said softly. She wasn’t going to let the young prince die. His wound began to heal, and she was able to draw out the poison.

Willow approached them, and smirked when she heard the fussing of a baby in Branch’s hair. She hurried over to him and pulled Sky out of his hair. “Stupid boy!” She had a huge grin on her face as she turned to head home with her prize. She was sure she had the firstborn child. He looked just like Branch when he was a baby. She sneered when she turned and saw that her entire colony was facing her, knives, swords, and arrows drawn. “So, it comes to this. You know, it’s not going to end. Just because you kill me, doesn’t mean that the line of madness will end. You’re all a bunch of idiots.”

Branch grabbed a knife and came up behind is mother. He stabbed down hard in her back, aiming for were her heart was. He hit his intended target and drew back quickly. He then went in front of her and grabbed Sky. He held his son close and moved away quickly.

Sky was frightened and cried loudly. He clung to his daddy when he grabbed him. At just over six months old, he had no idea what was going on, other then a scary stranger had grabbed him from his daddy.

Willow quickly bled internally. She collapsed and died quickly.

Smidge glared at Branch. They were supposed to leave all the babies in the bunker. “I’m kicking your ass! Why the hell is Sky with you?!” She widened her eyes, hearing Basil start to cry. “Damn it Branch! What the hell were you thinking?!”

Branch frowned and held Sky close. He was not going to admit why he had put his sons in grave danger. He turned to Willow’s colony. They all put their weapons away. He breathed hard, worried that they might turn on them anyway. Troll Villagers got between him and the invading colony. They were all prepared to fight but made no advances since the only one who had attacked was now dead.

King Peppy walked over and looked down at Willow. He sighed in relief and looked up at the colony. There were about forty among them, and they all had put their weapons away. He smiled softly. “You all don’t seem as scary as I thought you would be.”

“We didn’t want to fight. We were only doing as we were told, to save our skins. We planned to turn against her as soon as we were given the chance.” Fairy said calmly. She was a baby pink dwarf troll with white hair and bright pink eyes. She was twenty years old and twin sister to Locust. She had been the brains of the whole idea of turning against Willow. She had been angry after Willow had killed her twin brother and assumingly killed her sister in law and their unborn baby.

Aquamarine, a twenty-one-year-old light blue glitter troll with light blue hair and turquoise colored eyes stood by Fairy. He looked fierce and would defend who he considered to be the new queen of their colony, with his life. She had just saved them from heartache and more pain.

Honey began checking the other trolls that had been shot by arrows. She was unable to save them, because Willow had given them fatal shots. She had killed off seven Troll Villagers. She walked over to her sons and stood beside them.

Sprout clung to his mother. The ten-year-old trolling was scared. He was light yellow like his mom, but instead of cream hair, he had light green hair and instead of orange eyes, he had dark green eyes.

Cricket, a nineteen-year-old yellow troll with bright green hair and dark green eyes, stood next to his mother. He glanced around, nervous and ready to defend his mother Honey, and his baby brother Sprout if necessary.

“You are all welcome to join us. We are all friendly here, and you will all be safe.” King Peppy gave them a warm smile. He then turned to Creek and pulled him aside. “Creek, I want to make sure there is no one among them that we need to worry about. Do you see any evil spirits?”

Creek looked at the group. All of them had good natured spirits, that showed a little feistiness. He smiled at King Peppy and shook his head. “I don’t see any threats.”

King Peppy smiled. He was glad none of them were threats. He looked up at Fairy as she talked it over with her people.

Fairy had gathered them around her and occasionally glanced up at the large group of trolls. Their numbers were easily four or five times larger, and she was nervous. She had a toddler hidden in her hair. After much debate and tossing around pros and cons, she turned to King Peppy. “I know Branch. I was nine years old when my brother helped him leave our colony. He would not trust just anyone. If he thinks this colony is safe, then I think this colony is safe too. We will stay.”

King Peppy smiled and climbed up the first branch of a tree and hollered for everyone to pay attention. Once they were all looking at him, he pointed to the new colony. “I want to welcome this new colony into or village. We are to all pay them respect and protect them as if they are our family.”

Branch let out a soft sigh of relief. He put little Sky in his hair and startled when Smidge hit him in the arm hard. He groaned and rubbed his arm. He knew she was mad, but he had his reasons. He grumbled and leaned on a rock. He had been healed, but the poison had been in his system long enough to cause a fever. He was weak and tired.

“Put our family in danger again, and I won’t be as nice next time.” Smidge grumbled and looked at the new villagers. She was wary, but hopeful that they would be like Cherry and Marjoram. Innocent victims of an evil queen.


	14. Protecting The Blind

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Smidge realizes why Branch is so protective of Basil.

Two weeks after Willow attacked the village, and was killed, Branch came out of the bunker and headed for the raspberry patch. It was just starting to fruit, and he had been slowly introducing his boys to different foods. Today, they would get a chance to nibble on raspberries.

As he approached the bush, he gathered a few raspberries, and then sat down and pulled his seven-month-old twins out of his hair. He sat them in his lap and gave Sky his berry first.

Sky grasped the berry and leaned forward. He began to nom on it, and then made a face of horror and disgust when it burst and filled his mouth full of the sweet and sour juice.

“Don’t like it?” Branch chuckled and finished off the berry. He really loved berries. Especially blackberries. He gave the next one to Basil. He made sure to put it in his hands.

Basil ran his hand along the surface of the berry, and then put his hand on his daddy’s face. He babbled, and then began tearing the berry into pieces. He stuck a handful into his mouth and smiled. He loved it. He began stuffing his face happily.

Sky watched his brother, and then reached over and grabbed some. He began eating it. If his brother liked it, he had to like it too.

Branch chuckled and watched them eat. “You two are so cute.”

Smidge was on her way home with Twig hooked up to her back. She had just got done talking to Poppy. She saw Branch over by the raspberry bush. She walked over and sat down beside him. “Looks like they like raspberries.” She put Twig in her lap and offered him one.

Twig took a bite and spittled it out. He didn’t like it at all.

“I don’t think Sky likes it. He is eating it because Basil is eating it.” Branch ate one of the berries.

“I guess Twig doesn’t like it.” Smidge finished off the berry and picked another. She began to eat that one too. He saw Basil finished his and offered him half of hers. She frowned when he didn’t reach for it, even though it was right in front of him. “He never grabs anything from me like Sky and Twig.”

Branch moved the berry to Basil’s hands. Basil grabbed it and began eating it immediately.

Smidge looked curious. She moved her hand closer to Basil, posing a threat to poke one of his little eyes. He didn’t move. She looked up at Branch and frowned. “Basil is blind.”

Branch winced. He knew Smidge would realize eventually, but he was still very worried about the well being of his little boy. He held Basil close and frowned. “Basil is going to be just fine.” His voice expressed concern.

“He can’t see Branch.” Smidge sounded equally concerned. She moved closer and tried to take the infant from him. She wanted to look at his eyes.

Branch tensed up and held Basil to his chest. He wasn’t letting his blind baby boy go. “He is going to be fine Smidge. Drop it and let him be.”

“Let me see him. I want to make sure he is alright.” Smidge tried to get close and look into his eyes, but Branch kept moving him away from her. “What is your problem?! I am worried about our son!”

“I’m not letting him go. I will not let what happened to Rose happen to him too!” Branch gulped hard and put Sky and Basil into his hair. He held them fast to his head and crossed his arms. “I will never risk another blind family member ever again!” Tears filled his eyes. He got up and headed for the bunker. He feared that Basil would be killed because he was blind.

Smidge followed him and put Twig into her hair. She stopped in front of him and gave him a hug. She recalled him saying that Rose was killed in front of him. She had a bad feeling Rose had been blind. “Branch…” She looked up at him and frowned. “Please don’t be upset. Basil is going to be just fine. I just want to see if what he has is curable. If it is, we will take him to the medical pod and he will be treated.”

“I don’t want anyone to touch him.” Branch put his hand on her back and gave her a slight hug. He was tense and nervous. “I don’t think it’s treatable. It happens randomly in my family. It appears to be a genetic problem.”

“If it is cataracts, it can be treated.” Smidge recalled hearing that a young troll years back had had cataracts and she had had surgery to fix her eyes. Although she didn’t see cloudiness in Basil’s eyes when she did look at him, she thought there was still a chance that there were cataracts that she hadn’t seen.

“They are not cataracts. The blindness is not obvious until the baby is older and lacks the skills a sighted trolling would have, like following movement, blinking when it’s bright, and smiling when being smiled at. Basil is completely blind. From what I can tell he can’t even see light.” Branch looked worried.

“We should still get him checked. There might be something that can be done.” Smidge looked hopeful.

“Someone will want to kill him.” Branch was tense.

“No Branch, no one is going to kill our boy. They have to get through both of us, plus Poppy, Guy Diamond, Creek, DJ Suki, and everyone else who has fallen in love with that little boy the last seven months since his birth.” Smidge reassured.

“Fine, but I will lock myself in the bunker with him and Sky if anyone threatens his life.” Branch headed for the medical pod. He was tense and stressed out. He was very worried about Basil. Once at the medical pod, he pulled Basil out and gave him to Mama Goldie. “Can you check him please? Smidge and I want to see if his blindness is curable.”

Mama Goldie held Basil and walked over to a bed. She set him down and started checking his eyes with a bright light. She noticed his pupils didn’t dilate and his retinas were completely detached. “No Branch, he is completely blind and as far as I know, there is no cure for the type of blindness he has.” She gently gave Basil back to his daddy. She smiled softly. “He’s a very cute boy. He’s getting big.” She hadn’t seen him since a check up down at the bunker when he was a couple months old.

Smidge grabbed Branch’s hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. “That’s alright. We will teach him to get around. He has us and his brothers. He will be just fine.”

Branch held his son close and closed his eyes. “I’m going to do everything I can to teach him how to move around and do everything he wants to do. He’ll be like everyone else.” He had his doubts that his boy would live a long and healthy life, but after seeing Rose die, he had good reason to worry.


	15. Fairy Flames

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Poppy and Guy Diamond attempt to get to know Fairy.

It had been a month since Willow’s colony had joined Troll Village. Fairy had spent most of her time in her flower pod. She only left it to get water and supplies. She was always extremely tense when she left her flower pod. She had been widowed two months earlier. Willow had killed her mate, Chili, as a warning to her not to be foolish. Willow had been suspicious of her and hadn’t liked that she was whispering to her mate.

Fairy headed for the river. She kept quiet. Her daughter, Pearl, was in her hair. The salmon colored two-year-old dwarf trolling had red hair and bright pink eyes like her mama. Fairy had taught her to be extremely quiet when she was in her hair. Once she got to the water, Fairy began to fill a water pouch.

Princess Poppy had seen the baby pink dwarf troll leave her flower pod. She still hadn’t gotten a chance to talk to her yet. Every time she approached her, Fairy avoided her and would retreat to her flower pod. She wanted to get to know Fairy. She approached her and smiled. “Hello!”

Fairy startled and glanced up at Poppy. She closed her water pouch and turned to run to her flower pod. She had her daughter and didn’t feel comfortable being near these new trolls. She was still trying to get use to how friendly they were. It made her uncomfortable.

Guy Diamond got in front of her and stopped her. “Hold on, we want to talk to you.” He stood in her way. He was just as curious about this female as Poppy was. Marjoram had talked about her, and she sounded like an amazing troll. Good natured, smart, and very protective.

Poppy was right behind Fairy. “Please don’t run again. I want to get to know you and reassure you that you are safe here. There is no need to run and hide all the time.”

Fairy was tense. She avoided eye contact and crossed her arms. She didn’t want to talk to anyone. She wanted to go home and make dinner, feed her daughter, and go to bed. “I want to go to my flower pod.”

“It won’t take much time.” Guy Diamond knelt, figuring she was nervous. He didn’t want her to think he was a threat.

Poppy smiled softly. “You appear very tense. Is something going on?” She had a feeling Fairy was hiding something.

“I’m fine.” Fairy lied. She sighed heavily. “I want to go home.” She startled when Poppy and Guy Diamond’s hug time bracelets went off. She widened her eyes as Guy Diamond and Poppy embraced her. “What’s going on?!” She squirmed in their embrace and dropped her water pouch. She had only been hugged by her deceased mate and her brother. This was so weird and uncomfortable.

Guy Diamond let her go and smiled at her. “We hug every hour. We as villagers have done it for longer then either of us can remember. It’s a story for another time. We wanted to ask you some questions. We have been asking everyone how they are doing, if they need anything, and if there is anything we can do to help?”

Poppy nodded. “We take care of our people.”

“I’m doing just fine. I don’t need anything. I take care of myself. I don’t need help.” Fairy frowned, feeling her daughter squirm, signaling she needed to go potty. “I need to go.” She squeezed past them and hurried for her flower pod.

“Fairy, you forgot your water.” Poppy picked up the water pouch and followed her.

Fairy got to her flower pod and closed the door. She went to the bathroom and closed that door too. She set Pearl down on the toilet and smiled as she went potty. “You’re doing a good job with your potty-training baby girl.” She frowned, hearing the flower pod door open. She gritted her teeth and locked her bathroom door. “Shh…”

Pearl put her hand over her mouth and looked at the door.

Fairy cracked the door open and didn’t see anyone immediately. She stepped out, closed the door behind her, and looked around.

“I put your water in the kitchen.” Poppy came around the corner and screamed when Fairy tackled into her. She pushed her off and pinned her down with her hair. She watched Fairy struggle under her grip. “Whoa! Calm down Fairy…”

“You didn’t get permission to come into my home!” Fairy snapped angrily and slowly calmed her struggle. She was not amused but knew that Poppy was safe.

Guy Diamond heard the scream and hurried into the flower pod and came around the corner. He frowned, seeing that Poppy had pinned Fairy to the ground. “What happened?”

“I just scared her.” Poppy resided her hair and helped Fairy up.

“Don’t touch me…” Fairy pushed Poppy off and frowned when she heard the toilet flush. She hurried into the bathroom and slammed the door. She locked it and hugged Pearl close. She was worried about her daughter, even though this village seemed safe.

Guy Diamond looked puzzled when the toilet flushed. He frowned when Fairy ran into the bathroom and slammed the door shut. “Who’s in there, Fairy? I thought you were alone?”

Poppy looked confused. She glanced at Guy Diamond and then at the door.

“I have to protect what I have left of my family.” Fairy held Pearl close and closed her eyes tight.

“Family? Is Marjoram and Winter in there?” Guy Diamond was confused.

“No…” Fairy sat down by the door and ran her fingers through Pearl’s red hair.

Pearl began to hiccup. She squeaked and put her hand over her mouth.

“She’s got a child.” Poppy frowned and sat by the door. “You didn’t have to keep your baby a secret Fairy. Everyone who lives here is safe.”

Guy Diamond smiled softly. “This explains a lot.” He sat by Poppy and pulled Jewel and River out of his hair. “We have our own kids. I would want to protect my daughters if I was in your own position. I understand.”

River looked up at Guy Diamond and yawned. Her daddy had woken her up from her nap.

Jewel stretched out and snuggled into her daddy.

“I can’t risk her.” Fairy gulped. “I lost her father. I can’t lose her too.”

“We won’t let anything happen.” Guy Diamond reassured.

“Can we meet her?” Poppy was very curious.

“I’m scared.” Fairy hugged her daughter close and took a deep breath. “I have my reasons for hiding her.” She touched where Pearl’s right arm was supposed to be. When Willow had attacked Chili, she had also attacked Pearl. Willow had thought that Pearl died, but Honey had been able to save most of her. Fairy wasn’t going to risk her being killed for being imperfect.

“You’re safe here.” Guy Diamond reassured.

River began to cry. She was getting hungry.

Fairy heard her, tucked Pearl into her hair, and opened the door. Her drive to take care of a crying baby was strong. She looked at them with wide eyes when she realized that Guy Diamond had two babies in his lap. “You have your babies with you?” She was very surprised. “In a stranger’s home?”

“Well yes, we trust you. You helped save the remaining survivors of your colony.” Poppy stood up and smiled. “I won’t make you do anything uncomfortable, but you shouldn’t keep your baby hidden forever. She is going to need to come out, so she can learn and play.” Poppy took Guy Diamond’s hand and headed out the door. She was going to get more information later. She had a feeling she wasn’t going to get anything else today, and their babies were hungry.

Guy Diamond walked with her and looked back one more time as they headed for the flower pod to feed their babies.

Pearl watched them go and sighed. She felt a little bit better with the reassurance but was still wary. She was protective of her baby.


	16. Protective Mama

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Poppy, Smidge, and Branch have a talk with Fairy.

A couple days later, Poppy and Smidge were on their way to Fairy’s flower pod. They were going to try and persuade Fairy into letting her baby come out of the flower pod. They had good intentions in mind.

Fairy was out again and was on her way home with water. She saw Poppy and frowned. She had a feeling she was going to try and talk to her again. She didn’t want to. She had little Pearl in her hair.

Smidge walked straight over to her and wrapped her up gently with her hair. “You’re coming with me.” She headed for the bunker. She knew Fairy knew Branch, and she knew if anyone might be able to talk the protective mama into letting her daughter come out and play, it was Branch.

Fairy squealed and wriggled in her grasp. Her cheeks flushed and she grumbled. She knew Smidge was Branch’s mate, therefore she was safe, but she didn’t like how she was trapped. “Put me down! You could have just asked me to come over!”

Poppy followed Smidge and watched Fairy wriggle. She looked amused. “Think of it as a hair hug.”

Smidge got to the bunker and opened the door. She got on the elevator shaft and waited for Poppy to get on. She headed down. Fairy was still wrapped inside her hair.

Branch had his three little sons on the floor. They were playing with each other. He looked up when the elevator shaft began to come down. He frowned when it came down and he saw Fairy was wrapped up in Smidge’s hair. “You two are going to scare the shit out of these poor trolls. You need to stop doing stuff like this.”

“We will let her go in a minute.” Smidge walked off the elevator and smiled.

Fairy felt Pearl squirm, telling her mama silently that she needed to go potty. “I need to go to the bathroom! Let me go now!”

“If you promise not to run off, then sure.” Smidge smiled at her and crossed her arms.

“I need to go now! I don’t have much time!” Fairy grit her teeth. Her daughter had had an accident on her head before. She didn’t feel like being wet and smelly.

“Let her go Smidge.” Branch sighed. “Sorry Fairy, she is stubborn.”

Smidge smirked. “Cool your jets and I might consider letting you go.”

Pearl couldn’t wait any longer. She came out of her mama’s hair and ran towards a door. She opened it and didn’t find a bathroom there. She went to the next door and looked in. That wasn’t a bathroom either. She frowned and put her hand down. She needed to pee badly. She went to the next door and opened it. She saw a toilet and ran over to it. She froze as she began to pee herself. She teared up and began to cry. She had almost made it.

“Let me go!” Fairy said, now panicking and freaked out. Her little girl was crying, and she couldn’t see her.

Basil heard crying and began to crawl in the direction that he heard Pearl. He found her and pulled her into a hug.

Smidge let Fairy go and watched her run in the direction of Pearl’s crying. She had seen the little one and looked worried. She hadn’t realized that the little one was missing an arm. She followed since she had seen little Basil go that way too.

Branch had watched the little one scramble around and frowned, feeling his heart sink. No wonder Fairy was so protective. He was surprised that the little one was even alive. Willow would have certainly killed her if she had known that there was a deformed trolling in her village. He followed Smidge and Fairy. He wanted to make sure that Pearl was alright.

Poppy bit her bottom lip and stayed in the living space. She felt guilty now. She watched Twig and Sky quietly.

Fairy got to her daughter and gave her a gentle hug. “It’s alright baby. Accidents happen.” She grabbed a cloth and wet it down. She began cleaning her daughter up.

Basil felt Pearl being taken away. He looked confused. “Mama?” His vocabulary was up to three words, so he couldn’t say what he wanted to. He was worried about Pearl. She sounded upset.

Pearl sniffled as she was cleaned up. Luckily, she was nude, so clean up wasn’t hard. She looked over at Basil, curious about the little eight-month-old.

Smidge picked up Basil and held him to her chest. “Mama is here sweetheart.” She looked over at Pearl and watched Fairy clean her. “She’s very cute…”

Branch poked his head in. “Fairy? I’m so sorry. You are welcome to give her a bath here.” He saw the tiny puddle. He grabbed a towel and cleaned it up.

“Please don’t hurt her.” Fairy started to shake. She walked over to the bath and began to run the water. She knew Pearl would want a bath. The little one loved water. She kept the little one held close.

“Why would anyone hurt a beautiful and innocent little one like her?” Smidge didn’t understand.

“Willow would have killed her. She is missing an arm and would be considered worthless.” Branch explained. He could see that Fairy was very tense.

“Mama!” Basil squirmed and wriggled. He heard the water running and wanted to take a bath.

“She is not worthless.” Fairy said sharply. She pulled out a stool and climbed up it. She gently set Pearl in the water and shut the water off. She was grateful that the bathroom was dwarf troll friendly.

Smidge had to set Basil down. He was being too squirmy. She saw him crawl over to the tub and try to climb up the stool. “No sweetheart, you have to wait.” She pulled him off the stool and walked towards the living space.

Basil began having a tantrum. He wanted to have a bath too. He wriggled and squirmed in his mama’s arms.

“Of course, she is not worthless.” Branch shut the door so that they didn’t have to listen to Basil’s wails. He walked over and looked down at Pearl. “She is very adorable. I’m sure she will be fine. I was worried about my son too, but everyone here has reassured me that he will be safe. I know your daughter will be safe too. What is her name?”

“Her name is Pearl.” Fairy watched Pearl splash in the water. She took a deep breath and frowned. “You promise no one will hurt her?”

“They would have to get through me first.” Branch smirked and looked her up and down, noticing something was different about her then when he saw her a month and a half earlier. He noticed a very small bump in her midsection. “You’re pregnant. How far along are you?” He was afraid to ask her about her mate. He had a feeling she was widowed since she had moved into a flower pod alone.

Fairy winced. She had been trying to hide it, but it was getting hard to hide it anymore. “I’m not sure.” She bit her bottom lip. “I’m at least three months along.”

Branch looked at her, concerned. “You shouldn’t be living alone. If that baby is normal sized, giving birth might kill you.”

“Where else am I going to go? Chili is dead, and I must protect my daughter.” Fairy reached for Pearl with her hair and helped her clean up. She had tears in her eyes. She didn’t want to admit it, but she was petrified.

Poppy walked into the bathroom and closed the door. She had been listening from outside the door. She walked over and smiled softly. “You can come live at my flower pod. Guy Diamond and I will keep you and your daughter safe.”

Branch smiled softly. “Poppy has two daughters that would love to play and learn with Pearl.”

Fairy looked at Poppy and then at Branch. She wasn’t sure.

“Poppy is going to be queen in two years. She is a great troll. If she says she will keep you safe, she will see to it that you are safe.” Branch gave Fairy a reassuring smile.

“Alright, I will try. If anything happens though, we will be leaving. I won’t risk my family.” Fairy finished cleaning Pearl and took her out. She wrapped her in a towel and stepped down. She stood Pearl up and helped her dry off.

“I won’t let anything happen.” Poppy reassured. She smiled softly. She had a feeling Fairy was going to be difficult, but she understood. She was fiercely protective of her own family. River and Jewel were precious to her too, and she wouldn’t want anything to happen to them. She completely understood.


	17. Coffee And Cocoa

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The new village healer makes rounds.

Another two months had gone by, and it was starting to get cold outside. An illness had spread among all the trolls. It was nothing dangerous. It was just a cold, but Honey felt obligated to make rounds to everyone and make sure they were all safe and healed. She had learned a long time ago to reserve her energy and was able to heal everyone without exhausting herself. She had her little son Sprout with her. He was helping her heal too. He was getting tired. He was still learning how to control his energy levels. She found this a good time to train him on energy conservation. Her last stop was the royal flower pod. She knocked on the door and smiled when King Peppy answered the door.

King Peppy was in a robe. He had come down with the virus as well and had been up drinking tea when she knocked on the door. “Good afternoon Honey, what can I do for you?” His voice was raspy from a sore throat.

“I came to check on you. It appears you caught that nasty cold too.” Honey stepped in and put her hand on his chest. She put healing vibes into him and smiled as the color came back to his orange cheeks. “Feel better?”

Peppy smiled and nodded. “Yes, much better.” He smiled at Sprout. “Hello young man. Are you protecting your mom?”

Sprout shied behind Honey and gave his head a small nod. He was extremely shy, but he rarely left his mama’s side. He wasn’t much of a fighter, but he would protect her if he had to.

“Sprout is a good boy.” Honey smiled at Peppy. “I’m going to go home now. Have a good night.” She turned to go.

“Wait…” Peppy smiled at her. “Would you like a cup of coffee? It is the least I can do for you since you healed me of this cold.”

“I love coffee.” Honey smiled softly and turned around. She walked in and looked around. King Peppy had a nice home. It was well kept and was full of keep sakes and treasures. “Your home is beautiful.”

Peppy walked over to the kitchen and began warming up coffee. “Thank you. My wife was a treasure seeker. A lot of what you see were things she found while exploring.”

Honey saw a picture of Peppy standing next to a bright pink troll with violet colored hair and brown eyes. She was holding a newborn Poppy. “You have a beautiful family.”

“Thank you.” Peppy smiled softly. He had pictures hung on the wall. They were mostly of Poppy and him. He only had a few of his wife. She had died when Poppy was a baby.

“I don’t see this troll around.” Honey observed a picture of the deceased queen.

“She was killed by a Bergen when Princess Poppy was only a year old.” Peppy looked sad as he set a pot of coffee down at the table. He set a mug of coffee at the seat near her, and then sat down with his own coffee mug. He pushed a mug of hot cocoa towards Sprout, figuring the ten-year-old didn’t drink coffee.

Sprout walked over, smelling sweet cocoa. He grabbed the mug and smiled at Peppy. “Thank you, sir.” He began to drink it.

“I’m sorry to hear that.” Honey sat down at the table and began to sip on the coffee. She knew how that felt. She had lost her mate right after Sprout was born. She was grateful that two of her children were still alive. Willow had been particularly harsh to her family. She had killed several of her children for being too soft. She was glad that Cricket and Sprout were still alive. They both had a protective streak that Willow had liked. It had saved their lives.

“Not your fault.” Peppy settled down to drink his coffee. “Have you settled down alright? I’ve heard that my daughter has scared a couple of your fellow members. She is hyper and protective, but she has the best intentions in mind.”

“I’m doing just fine. I know Branch. He wouldn’t have moved here if he felt unsafe. If he loves it here, then I know it is a good place.” Honey smiled softly. “Poppy is a sweet princess. It is very amusing seeing her try to help Fairy. I don’t think she realizes that that girl won’t be tamed. She had to be tough growing up. She is very protective of her family.”

“I can understand that. I’ve seen Pearl. I wouldn’t want anyone touching her either.” Peppy smiled softly. “I had to reassure her more then once that no one was going to harm Pearl. I wouldn’t allow that sort of behavior.”

“I’m grateful. I saved that baby’s life. She almost died. I was unable to save her arm.” Honey sighed and shook her head. “I’m glad you’re a nice king. None of us are used to your kindness. We are all use to being yelled at and ordered around.” She bit her bottom lip. “Willow kidnapped me when I was seventeen. She had witnessed me healing my mate. She had snatched us both. She liked him too. He was trying to protect me. I was pregnant with Cricket. She told him that she needed more warriors like him.”

“From all the stories I‘ve heard, Willow sounded insane and mean. Nothing like Branch at all.” Peppy shook his head. “I heard the curse story. I’m concerned for his eldest son.”

“We will have to watch the boy for sure.” Honey sighed softly. She knew Branch had three boys and had no clue which one the evil child was.

“We’re trying to condition him to be good.” Peppy smiled at her.

“I sure hope that helps.” Honey finished her coffee and looked into his bright pink eyes. “Did you ever remarry?” She asked curiously.

“No, I have not found the right troll since Juniper died.” Peppy looked at one of the pictures of his lovely mate. He missed her so much.

“I understand. Life hasn’t been the same since Grasshopper died.” Honey got up. “We’re going to head home. Thank you for having us over.” She took Sprout’s hand and headed for the door.

“Have a good night.” Peppy walked them to the door and watched them walk away. He sighed and smiled. She seemed like a sweet lady. He was hoping to get to know her better soon.


	18. Red Hot Chili Pepper

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fairy surprises her hosts.

Another month had gone by, and Fairy was being watched like a hawk. Poppy made sure someone was always with her, unless she was home and either Poppy or Guy Diamond just in case, she went into labor. This came to be extremely annoying for Fairy, who was an independent troll. She had been more open to letting Pearl run around the flower pod though. She spent a lot of time watching Pearl play with River and Jewel, who were about a year and a half younger then she was.

As evening came to the village, Guy Diamond and Poppy went to bed.

Fairy was curled up on her side when she started having her first contraction. She waited and watched the time. After another two hours went by, and the contractions were about three minutes apart, she got up and headed for the bathroom. She began to run a bath. Once it was deep enough to cover her belly, she stopped the water, threw a few towels on the edge so she could reach them, and carefully climbed in. She eased into the warm bath and leaned back in the water. She sighed softly, feeling a little more relaxed in the bath water.

Pearl got up to go potty. She walked in and got on the toilet. She looked over at her mama as she went potty. “Bath time mama?” She finished and climbed onto the stool.

“No sweetheart, not this time.” Fairy smiled softly. “Go back to bed baby. I will be back in soon.”

“OK mama.” Pearl got down and headed back to bed.

Fairy looked over, seeing that her daughter left the door open. She sighed, not really wanting to get back out. She was starting to feel pressure and a lot of pain. Getting out right now would be very difficult and unwise. Her baby was about to come. She really hoped that Poppy or Guy Diamond wouldn’t come in on her. She was completely nude. During the next contraction, she delivered a tiny red colored boy with white hair. She grabbed him and pulled him onto her chest. She reached up, grabbed a towel, and began to dry him off.

As soon as the baby was out of the water and his face was wiped, he began letting out loud cries. He was healthy and tiny.

“Hello Habanero…” Fairy had decided if she had a boy, she would indirectly name him after his daddy. She held him close and closed her eyes. He was red like his daddy. “You’re so beautiful.”

Guy Diamond woke up to the sounds of a baby crying. He thought it was Jewel or River that was crying at first. He frowned when he realized it wasn’t one of his daughters. He shook Poppy awake and then headed for the sound of newborn cries.

Poppy mumbled sleepily, and then shot up when she heard the cries. She followed Guy Diamond as he walked into the bathroom. She looked in the tub and widened her yes. “You didn’t wake us up?!”

Fairy flushed when Guy Diamond and Poppy walked in. She put a towel over herself. “Why would I have? I kept telling you two that I could do this. I had Pearl unassisted too.”

Guy Diamond smiled softly. “I’m glad you were able to handle it alone. Your little one looks and sounds healthy.”

“You gave birth in the bathtub?” Poppy had never heard of that before.

“Yes, the water helped me relax when I had Pearl.” Fairy gently put Habanero in her hair and wrapped him gently to her head, so he was secure. She wrapped herself up, let the tub drain, and carefully climbed out of the tub. She was very sore. She slowly walked for her room so she could go to bed. She was very tired.

“Here, I got you.” Guy Diamond gently picked her up and smiled softly when she whacked him. “Easy little mama. I’m not going to hurt you.” He set her down in her bed and helped her get comfortable.

Poppy went to get Fairy a snack and some water. She knew how exhausting it was to have a baby.

Fairy glared at Guy Diamond as he started taking care of her. She didn’t want to admit it, but she was extremely grateful for the help. She tensed up when he grabbed Habanero out of her hair.

Guy Diamond took the newborn to the crib and put a diaper on him. He carefully put him in clothes, so he didn’t get cold. It was the beginning of winter and very cold outside. Once he was all dressed up and cozy, he brought him over and gently gave him back to his mama. “There we go. He’s dressed up warm and snug.”

Fairy had watched him gently handle her newborn baby. She was still tense but let him do it. She was so tired. “Thank you…” She cradled her baby close.

Poppy came back in with a glass of water and a cookie. She sat beside Fairy and smiled down at her baby. “What are you naming the little one?”

Guy Diamond sat at the edge of the bed and smiled.

“I’m naming him after his daddy, Chili. I am going to call him Habanero.” Fairy took a drink of the water and ate the cookie. She was thirsty and hungry.

“He’s very cute.” Poppy smiled and set the water glass by her bed. “We are going to let you sleep. If you need anything, we are just down the hall.” She took Guy Diamond’s hand and walked to the door. She turned off the light for her and headed for the bedroom.

Fairy settled into bed and settled Habanero next to her. She smiled softly. She didn’t realize until now just how much Guy Diamond and Poppy cared. She really appreciated them and all they did, even if she had a hard time showing it.


	19. A Big Wedding

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everyone gathers for a winter wedding.

Cherry was getting a sweater dress on. She was going to stand by her best buddy during her wedding. She put her hair in a pony tail and put a flower in her hair. Once she was ready, she walked over to the elevator shaft and waited impatiently for Branch and Smidge to finish getting ready.

Branch was all dressed up in a suit with a scarf. He had just put the twins in warm clothing. They were only a couple weeks away from turning one year old. He was amazed at how fast time had gone by. It was like yesterday that they were newborns. He finished getting them dressed and set them in his hair.

Smidge tucked a bundled-up Twig into her hair and walked over to Branch. She was dressed up in a sweater dress. She had a big smile on her face. Her best male friend in the entire village was getting married and she was so excited for him.

Biggie was nervous. It had taken nine months of helping Marjoram with Winter, but he had finally become brave enough to ask her if she would marry him. She had accepted. He was all dressed up and had little Winter tucked in his hair. 

Mr. Dinkles was perched on his shoulder. He had a little suit and tie on. “Mew.”

“I am not.” Biggie argued with his pet. “I just have gas.” He looked in the mirror and straightened his tie. He was trying to be brave.

“You look great.” Marjoram came out of the bathroom and hugged Biggie. She was dressed in a baby green sweater dress with an emerald green wedding veil cape. She looked up at him and smiled. She had warmed up to him quickly. She loved how sweet he was, and how he helped with little Winter.

“You’re so beautiful.” Biggie pulled her in and kissed her. “Let’s get going.” He walked with her towards the concert mushroom.

Once everyone was gathered at the concert mushroom, King Peppy, Prince Guy Diamond, and Princess Poppy stood in front of the crowd. King Peppy was training his young daughter and son in law how to wed couples, since he was only about a year away from handing them the crown.

“Thank you everyone for gathering here today. We are here to bare witness to the union of a family. With joining hands, Biggie will become husband to Marjoram, and Marjoram will become wife to Biggie. Biggie will become father to Winter and raise him as if he was his own child.” King Peppy smiled at Biggie. “Biggie, do you accept this declaration?”

Biggie smiled at Peppy. “Yes, I do.”

King Peppy turned to Marjoram. “Marjoram, do you accept this declaration?”

“I do.” Marjoram smiled at Peppy, and then turned to Biggie. She knew he was a great guy and was excited.

“With acceptation to this declaration, I now bind you together and declare you husband and wife.” King Peppy smiled at them. “You may now kiss your bride.”

Biggie pulled Marjoram close and kissed her. He was extremely happy.

Everyone in the crowd roared happily. It was the first wedding since Willow had attacked during the summer, and this was one step closer to making the two colonies one.

Smidge walked over and smiled up at Biggie. She gave him a big hug. “Told you she was the one for you.” She opened her arms. “I’ll take care of Winter tonight for you.”

Biggie hugged Smidge, and then picked up Winter from inside his hair and gave him to Smidge. “You’re the best Smidge.”

Smidge held nine-month-old Winter close and gave Marjoram a half hug. “I’m so happy for you two.”

“Thank you for watching Winter for us.” Marjoram hugged Smidge and ran her hand through her son’s dark green hair. “Be good for her.” She kissed his cheek, and then turned to Biggie and snuggled into him.

Winter smiled at his mama. “Mama!” He loved his mama and was a very happy and sweet boy.

Biggie hugged Marjoram to him and smiled. She made him so happy.

After the wedding party, Biggie carried his wife home. He went into the flower pod and closed the door behind them. He took her to their bedroom. He set her down and smiled down at her. “You’re so beautiful.”

“Mine…” Marjoram pulled him in and kissed him passionately.

Biggie returned the kiss and ran his hand along her dark green hair.

Marjoram began to take off her cape and dress. She giggled and smiled up at him as he began to undress too. She pressed into him and looked up at him. “I love you Biggie.”

“I love you too Marjoram.” Biggie kissed along her neck and ear. He ran his hand along her inner thigh. He was aroused.

Marjoram reached down to Biggie’s member. She took it in her mouth and began to suckle gently.

“Marjoram…” Biggie put his hand on her shoulder and bit his bottom lip. Her lips felt amazing on his swollen member. He braced himself and reached down, messaging her vulva with his hand.

Marjoram shivered and moaned. She began licking the tip of his member. She was loving how he tasted, and his touch felt amazing on her delicate parts.

Biggie moaned and pressed her close. He repositioned her so he was over her. He gently pushed into her with his length. He held her close and began to thrust.

“Biggie!” Marjoram shivered and moaned loudly. “Oh my god…” She arched her back and made happy noises. This was way better than she ever imagined. “I think I know how you got your name…”

“I love you…” Biggie pushed deeper, filling her with his length. He could feel her walls tighten around his member. He moaned and thrust his hips faster. He kissed along her neck and ear, then ran his tongue along her ear lobe.

“I love you too…” Marjoram shivered and pulsed her walls. She was extremely pleased.

They went at it for hours, enjoying themselves and were not afraid to express their happiness.


	20. Birthday Party

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The first year since the birth of eight little trollings is celebrated.

Branch was getting the bunker ready. His bunker seemed like the perfect place to celebrate the births of eight trollings. They decided that it would be easier to just celebrate their birthdays on Guy Diamond’s birthday. They would have a bigger celebration when the trollings were older and understood the difference between days. Once he was done, he turned and saw that Smidge had spread glitter everywhere. He hated glitter. He groaned, knowing that it was going to take weeks to get it cleaned up.

Basil used Sky, to pull himself up, knocking his brother to his butt. He walked towards Smidge. He could hear her walking around and was curious. He was still getting use to walking and was wobbly. He had been delayed walking. He had rather crawled, so he had a better sense of where he was at. He was slowly learning to use his hands and his feet to feel around. He always got angry if his parents tried to put socks or shoes on his feet.

Sky got knocked over, but happily stood back up. He followed his brother and smiled at his mama. He put his arms up. “Up!” He wanted to be carried.

Twig was quietly spreading the glitter around the ground. He kept to himself mostly. He was shy compared to his brothers.

There was a knock on the door, which got Smidge’s attention. She set the glitter aside and headed for the elevator shaft. She headed up.

Basil heard Smidge set the glitter down. He waddled that way and began feeling along the table. He found the container that held the glitter and pulled it off the table. He lost balance and fall onto his butt, spilling the glitter into his hair, and over his face. He began to wail, feeling glitter spill into his eyes.

Branch hurried over and rubbed the glitter off his face. “I don’t like it either buddy. I’m sorry.” He went to the bathroom to help his boy get the glitter out of his eyes.

Smidge returned with the snack pack, including Marjoram, Fairy, and their babies. She headed for the bathroom to make sure Basil was alright.

Satin set Vanilla down by Sky and picked up the glitter container. She set it down up high and smiled as she watched Vanilla and Sky play with the glitter. “Baths will be in order tonight.”

“Yes, it will.” Chenille smiled at her sister and glanced towards the bathroom. Basil sounded angry. She wondered what happened.

Guy Diamond set Jewel and River down. He headed for the bathroom to make sure Basil was alright.

Poppy settled Fairy down at the couch and put a blanket over her while she fed Habanero. She had been spoiling the small mama still. Her baby was only a month old and was really enjoying having her around.

Pearl stood by her mama and played with Habanero’s hair. She loved her baby brother.

Once Basil was calmed down, Branch brought him back in and set him down by Pearl. He knew Basil loved Pearl and she would get him to calm down faster.

“Basil!” Pearl pulled the wobbly one year old to her and smiled as she snuggled him.

Basil squealed and clung to Pearl’s left arm. He bounced a few times shakily. He was very happy that she was there.

Branch smiled and looked at Fairy. “Look at that sweet little boy. He’s getting big.” He ran his hand through his white hair. “You did good with this one Fairy.”

“Thank you Branch.” Fairy watched Pearl and Basil. She thought it was very cute that Pearl had attached herself to the little guy.

Creek walked over and set Rhythm and Melody down. He picked up Sky and smiled. “Hello kiddo.” He hugged him. He came over and loved on his twin boys occasionally. He did help make them after all and wanted to be a part of their lives. “Happy Birthday…” He saw that Basil was clung to Pearl and didn’t dear touch him. Basil did not like being pulled from Pearl when he was snuggling with her. He had learned that the hard way, and that boy had a temper. He didn’t feel like having his hair pulled too much today.

River crawled over to Creek and put her arms up. “Eek!” She called up to him. She loved Creek.

Creek set Sky down and picked up River. “Hello princess.” He kissed her cheek and chuckled when she put her hand towards his hair. “Don’t pull sweetie.” He watched her expression. She looked puzzled as she waved her hand around over his head. He wondered if she was seeing auras. “I’m going to have start teaching you. I think you are a spirit troll.”

“I wouldn’t be surprised. I think Sky is one too.” Branch picked up Rhythm and smiled. “Hello little one. Are you being good for mommy and daddy?”

“When he wants to.” DJ Suki smiled softly and picked up Jewel. “Happy Birthday little princess.” She kissed her cheek and ran her hand along her pink hair. “Do you want to listen to music?” She put her head phones close to Jewel’s ear and let her listen.

Jewel squealed and leaned her head towards the ear phone. She squirmed with excitement.

Winter crawled over to Twig and pulled on his hair. He was learning that hair was fun to touch and tug on. Especially when he got a reaction from his mama or daddy.

Twig frowned and threw himself back. He kicked and flailed angrily. He began to cry. He didn’t like that at all.

Smidge frowned and walked over. She picked up Twig and held him. “It’s alright. He’s still learning not to pull sweetie.”

Twig glared down at Winter and arched his back as he threw a tantrum. The normally quiet trolling was not happy at all.

Biggie walked over and picked Winter up. “I’m sorry Smidge. We’re working on getting him to not do that. He’s still learning.”

“It’s alright. I understand. Twig is fine. He just needs a nap.” Smidge headed for the boys’ bedroom. She set Twig in his crib, covered him up, and turned off the light so he would calm down. She shut the door and headed back towards the others.

Twig fussed for a little bit, but eventually calmed down and fell asleep.

“Starting to show that temper?” Creek walked over.

“Yeah, unfortunately. He is usually quiet though.” Branch sighed. He was still nervous about that boy, but he was also attached and very protective.

“We will have to watch him.” Creek looked concerned. He didn’t like Twig’s spiritual presence. It was unnerving.

They continued to party and enjoy themselves well into the afternoon, before everyone began to head home. It was hard to believe that those eight little ones were a year old already.


	21. The One Year Queen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> King Peppy makes a decision that brings great joy to his colony.

It was midwinter’s day, and King Peppy gathered the villagers together. He had made no announcements to his plans today, so he didn’t expect anyone to be dressed nicely. The only other trolls who knew what was going on were Honey, Sprout, Cricket, Guy Diamond and Poppy.

Poppy had a baby blue sweater dress on. She had River and Jewel dressed up nicely and had spoiled them a little extra that morning since it was officially Jewel’s first birthday. She had a few pieces of paper in her hands. She read through them repeatedly. She was trying to memorize the words so that she didn’t have to look at the vows. She was squirming with excitement. She was given the honor of marrying her dad to Honey. She was going to have a mama. She had never expected this to happen, and she was very happy for him.

As everyone began to gather around, whispers were being heard among them. They were puzzled as to why King Peppy and the future queen and king were dressed up. It was especially shocking to see Guy Diamond in more then a scarf. They knew something big was going on.

Peppy stood next to Poppy. He had Honey by the hand. He was watched as everyone gathered. He turned to her and smiled. “I love you…”

“I love you too.” Honey smiled at him. She was dressed in an orange sweater dress with a cream veil cape. She was nervous, but she had come to really enjoy her little meetings with him. They had fallen hard in love.

Once everyone was gathered, Poppy faced everyone and smiled. “I’m so glad that you were all able to join us today. I’m excited to announce that my father, King Peppy, will be joining hands with our village healer, Honey.” She turned to father. “King Peppy, with joining hands with Honey, you will form a bond with her. You will become father to her two sons, Cricket and Sprout, and agree to raise Sprout until he is old enough to be on his own. Honey, with taking King Peppy’s hand, you will become mother to me, and will take the throne as our new queen until my twenty first birthday in one year and two months time. Do you both agree to this?”

“I do.” King Peppy took Honey’s hands. He was very happy.

“I accept.” Honey looked into King Peppy’s eyes and smiled. Her heart was pounding hard in her chest. She was nervous and excited to be a part of their lives.

“You may now kiss.” Poppy squirmed with excitement. She didn’t remember her mama. She only had stories and pictures. Now she had Honey, and although it was not the same, she was very happy about it.

King Peppy pulled Queen Honey close and kissed her happily. “My beautiful queen…”

Honey kissed him back and smiled at him. “All yours.”

Sprout made a face when then kissed and gagged. He didn’t like when they kissed. He thought it was gross.

Cricket nudged him and laughed. “You’ll like kissing one day kid.”

“No I won’t! It’s disgusting!” Sprout shook his head. He was in disbelief about ever loving and kissing another troll.

As King Peppy and Queen Honey kissed, a roar of approval came over the village. They were very happy for them. After being widowed for so long, they both deserved happiness.

After a huge celebration, King Peppy walked with Queen Honey to their flower pod. Cricket had volunteered to watch his brother, so that they could have an undisturbed first night as a married couple. Once they were inside, Peppy closed his door and turned to his new wife. He pulled her in and kissed her. He thought he would never find the right troll to introduce into his life again, but she had made him so happy the last six months since joining the village. She was so sweet, and he pictured many wonderful years with her.

Honey kissed him back and ran her fingers though his gray streaked bright pink hair. She had warmed up to him, especially after their first sit down over coffee, and saving him from being miserable with that cold in late fall. She had never pictured moving on after Grasshopper, but Peppy had changed her mind. She had a feeling that they had several wonderful years together. She was so glad she could share it with him.

Peppy picked up Honey and carried her towards the bedroom. He set her down in bed and crawled over her. He began kissing her passionately.

Honey giggled, feeling his mustache tickle her nose. She kissed him back and played with his tie. She was nervous but wanted him. It had been some time since she had last mated.

Peppy chuckled and pulled her undies off. He was eager himself. He didn’t wait to undress. He pulled her close and began to play with her vulva gently with his fingers.

Honey moaned and put her hand down his pants. She pressed her hand against his member. She could feel that it was already erect. “You’re eager…”

“Forgive me, I’m rusty.” Peppy chuckled and helped her remove her dress. He removed his pants and dress shirt. He pushed his length into her and began thrusting. He moaned in pleasure.

“It’s alright.” Honey smiled softly and helped him strip down. She moaned in pleasure as he pushed into her. She tightened her walls and held him close. “Peppy…” She kissed him hungrily.

Peppy ran his hand through her cream-colored hair. He kissed her and pushed deeper. “You’re so beautiful Honey…” He was very happy.

They enjoyed each other well into the night, feeling ecstasy for the first time in years.


	22. Spirited Trollings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Creek and DJ Suki have some bonding time with all five of Creek’s children.

A month later, Creek was on his way home with Basil and Sky in his hair, and River in his arms. He had taken his babies from their daddies, so that he could have some bonding time and to give them a short lesson on spirits and auras. They were still very young, and he didn’t expect them to retain much, but it was good to start them early. He got home and set River down. He then pulled Basil out of his hair and set him down. He set Sky next to him.

“Are you sure about teaching them? They’re barely a year old. I think it’s too early.” DJ Suki was feeding Rhythm. He was more interested in playing with his food, instead of eating it.

Melody walked over to River and hugged her half-sister. She was always excited when she came over and played.

River smiled and hugged Melody back. She then walked over to DJ Suki and tugged on her shirt. She reached towards her headphones. She loved music.

DJ Suki smiled down at River and gave her the headphones. She smiled as River held it to her head and began to bounce.

Basil heard the music. He walked over and pulled River closer. He put his ear by the headphones and bounced with her. He loved his sister and loved music too.

Sky looked up at Rhythm and began to suck on his thumb. He kept close to Basil. He was very protective of his twin.

Once Rhythm was cleaned up, DJ Suki set him down and looked at Creek. “So how are you going to do this?” She was curious how he was going to start teaching one-year olds about spirits and auras.

“Talk to them and hope they listen.” Creek chuckled and sat down. He smiled when Melody sat on his lap. “Come here little ones.”

River pulled the headphones off and gave them to DJ Suki. She walked over and sat by Melody. She looked up and smiled up at Creek. She was hoping for a story.

Basil grabbed River by the hand and stumbled when she led him towards Creek. He tripped on a toy and faceplanted. He sat up and felt around for the tripping hazard. He found it and tossed it away angrily. “No!”

Sky sat by Basil and hugged into him. He was hoping for a story too.

Rhythm walked over to the tossed toy, picked it up, and then walked over and sat on his daddy’s lap. “Dada!” He offered the toy. He didn’t understand why Basil threw it.

Creek took the toy and set it aside. He smiled at the little ones. “I’m going to start with colors little one. If you see a color around a troll, it is their emotional state at that time. You will see all colors of the rainbow, including natural colors and neutral colors. They can also be different shades. They can be extremely light in color, like a pastel color. This is always a very good sign. It means that they are expressing the good side of an emotion. Dark colors are the opposite. Dark auras always mean that the emotion that is being expressed is bad.” He looked at Basil, knowing he couldn’t see. He still shared with him though, knowing it was wrong to exclude him for not being able to see. “Yellow means happiness. Light yellow means that a troll is very happy. Dark yellow means the troll feels lust. Green means disgust. Light green means that they are grossed out, but it is mild. Dark green means that troll is deeply embarrassed, showing envy, or is disturbed. Red means anger. Light red can mean a few things. It can mean that they are annoyed or jealous. Dark red means that a troll is extremely angry or enraged.” He stopped when he noticed that Rhythm was starting to doze off.

Basil had settled down to sucking on his hand. He was bored. He leaned on his brother, happy to be snuggled up to his twin.

Sky was inspecting Basil. He didn’t understand colors very well yet but was curious. Basil was expressing a yellow aura, mixed with light magenta.

Melody yawned and snuggled into her daddy sleepily.

River was leaning forward slightly and very interested. She loved colors and had been learning about them with Pearl.

“Alright, that is enough little ones. Nap time.” DJ Suki picked up Rhythm and Melody. She headed for the bedroom to change them and settle them in for a nap.

River got up and walked towards the bathroom. She had been watching Pearl use the potty and had been picking up early how to use it. She pulled off her diaper and tried to climb up.

Creek got up and followed her. He set her on the edge of the toilet and held her as she went pee. “Good girl.” He was very impressed and wondered if Poppy and Guy Diamond had been teaching her how to potty on the toilet already. She was only barely over a year old.

River held onto Creek and smiled up at him. She didn’t like the feeling of a dirty diaper and was eager to learn how to use the potty like Pearl. She was excited. This was the first time she had managed to make it without getting a little wet. “Pee!”

“Yes baby, you’re peeing in the toilet like a big girl.” Creek felt a small hand on his side. It was Basil. “Do you want to try too son?” He cleaned River up, and then put Basil on the toilet next. He smiled when the little guy began to go in the toilet too. “You little ones are so smart.” He was a proud daddy.

DJ Suki peeked in and smiled. “I thought trollings potty trained at two?” She was a little surprised to see Basil using the toilet like a big boy.

“I think Poppy and Guy Diamond are teaching River. I just tried Basil to see if he would do it, and he did like a good boy.” Creek cleaned Basil up and set him down.

Basil grabbed River’s hand and headed for the living space. “Sky!” He reached his brother and hugged him. “Pee!” He was excited and happy for the praise.

“We should try that with our kids. It’ll save us on laundry.” DJ Suki smiled and followed the kids to the living room. “Nap time.” She picked up Sky and Basil. She headed for the bedroom.

“No!” Basil protested and rubbed his eyes tiredly.

Sky yawned and snuggled into DJ Suki.

Creek came into the living space and picked up River. He headed after DJ Suki and set her by Melody. He kissed her cheek and then headed for the kitchen to make lunch. He was very proud of his kids. They were growing up so fast.


	23. Fish And Jelly

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Biggie and Marjoram pay Branch and Smidge a visit.

Branch was making lunch. He had gone ice fishing the day before and had smoked some fish. The bunker stunk of smoked fish. He was making sandwiches.

Marjoram and Biggie were over. Smidge had invited them over for lunch. They only had Twig. Creek had taken Basil and Sky over for the day.

Marjoram set Winter down and walked over to the kitchen. She had found out just a couple days earlier that she was pregnant. She was very hungry, and that smoked fish smelled good. She began looking for it.

“Can I get you something Marjoram?” Branch spread jam and nut butter on bread.

“Where is the fish? It smells so good.” Marjoram snatched a sandwich and began to eat it.

“You seem very hungry.” Branch chuckled and pulled a box out of the shelf. He pushed it towards her and smiled when she opened it and began to eat the stinky slices.

“You’re not kissing me after eating those.” Biggie gagged. He thought the smoked fish smelled gross.

“I’m starving.” Marjoram grinned and made a pucker up face. She moved towards Biggie and giggled when he backed away and made a face of disgust.

“I bet you’re having twins. Branch acted like he was starving when he wasn’t puking.” Smidge mused. It was fun to watch Marjoram. She was almost as bad as she was when it came to making Biggie squirm.

“Smidge, that’s not funny.” Biggie was already very nervous, and the thought of twins scared him.

“OK, so triplets then?” Smidge smirked and picked up a slice of smoked fish. She walked towards Biggie. She had a demonic look on her face.

“Oh my dinkles, what are you doing with that fish?” Biggie felt a kiss on the cheek as Marjoram snuggled up to him. Her breath was very stinky.

Marjoram giggled and pinned Biggie down gently. She bit her bottom lip, amused by his expression.

Smidge giggled and dangled the fish over Biggie’s mouth. She had it so close that it touched his nose. She laughed when he gagged. She handed the slice to Marjoram. “Better watch out, he’s a puker.”

Biggie gagged and squirmed. “I hate fish.” He made a face as his wife ate the slice of fish. “So gross…”

Marjoram got off him and took Mr. Dinkles. “You like fish, don’t you Mr. Dinkles?”

“Mew.” Mr. Dinkles was amused.

“I am not!” Biggie glared at his pet worm. “I just hate fish.”

“Alright kids, I don’t want to clean up puke. Behave.” Branch shot a glare towards Smidge, knowing she would take that as a challenge.

Winter crawled over to Twig and pulled him in for a hug.

Twig startled when Winter grabbed him. He pushed him off and walked towards the kitchen. He recalled Winter pulling his hair and didn’t want to be near him. He fussed and made grabby hands towards Branch.

Winter followed him and giggled. “Hug!”

“Not right now Twig. I am almost done with lunch.” Branch made the last sandwich and set it at the table.

Twig’s cheeks got red and he clung to his daddy’s leg. He didn’t let go.

Branch dragged his son around as he walked around the kitchen. “Let go Twig.” He picked his son up and set him down at the table. “Here you go sweetheart.” He gave him a piece to eat.

Biggie walked over to the table. “Thank you for lunch Branch.” He began to eat.

Smidge sat down and began to eat too.

Marjoram picked up Winter and sat with him. She began giving him tiny pieces. She nibbled on smoked fish and sandwiches. She even put a slice in to try it with the jelly and nut sandwich. She liked how it tasted.

“That’s so gross Marjoram.” Biggie was not amused. He had a feeling she was going to want that nasty fish around. She seemed to really like it.

As if she was reading his mind, Marjoram turned to Biggie and grinned. “We’re going to have to bring some of this smoked fish home. This is amazing.” She finished her sandwich and licked her lips. She felt satisfied after eating two sandwiches and several slices of stinky smoked fish.

Smidge giggled and put her hand over her mouth. “You poor thing.” She almost felt sorry for Biggie.

“Marjoram, it smells so bad. Do we have to?” Biggie groaned softly.

“It tastes so good.” Marjoram gave him the pouty face. She was hoping he would let her eat it. If not, she already planned on raiding Branch’s kitchen regularly.

Branch was busy slowly feeding Twig. He frowned when Twig suddenly held his throat and looked panicked. He realized he was chocking and put his over his knee. He began giving him firm whacks on the back. “Shit!”

“Branch! Don’t curse in front of the…” Smidge began to scold until she realized Twig was chocking. She hurried over and widened her eyes. “Oh my god!” She panicked and watched Branch work on Twig. She was scared.

Twig felt the whacks and teared up. After several scary seconds, he coughed out the bite. He began to cry. He was sore and upset.

Branch looked panicked and held his son close. “Thank god…” He looked worried as he held his boy close. That had been so scary.

Smidge grabbed Twig and held him close. “It’s alright baby.” She was crying. 

Marjoram looked alarmed. “We should take him to Honey and make sure he’s OK.”

Biggie put Winter in his hair and put Marjoram’s coat on her. “Let’s go. Those whacks were hard. He’s going to at least feel better if Honey sees him and heals him.”

Branch put on his coat and helped Smidge get dressed. He wrapped Twig in a blanket, and all of them headed for the medical pod. Once at the medical pod, Branch set Twig down in a bed. “He chocked on a piece of sandwich.”

Honey put her hand on the little one and began to heal him. “He’s going to be alright.” She reassured. She smelled the fish and gagged. 

Smidge handed Honey a trashcan. 

Honey got Twig healed and smiled softly. “Thank you, Smidge.” She set it aside. She didn’t need it. “I don’t like fish.”

Branch picked up Twig and held him close. That had been so scary.


	24. Magic Is In The Air

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fairy gets a pleasant surprise.

A month had gone by, and Marjoram had asked Fairy to have Pearl and Habanero over. She had wanted Winter to have some time with his cousins. She was hesitant but allowed it. Guy Diamond had sent his girls off to King Peppy and Queen Honey’s for grandparent time, taking full advantage of having two less kids in the house. With the flower pod now vacant of trollings, Guy Diamond was prepping the bedroom for Poppy. He planned on spoiling her. She had fallen asleep on the couch, taking advantage of the temporary peace.

Fairy heard him scrambling around. She peeked into their room, curious as to what he was fussing over. She had had the same thought Poppy had. The peace was nice, and it was a good time to rest. She widened her eyes, seeing the room was surrounded by candles. He had lit them all and had spread dried up rose petals on the bed. The room was filled with the sweet scent of vanilla and lavender. She backed away, blushing. She had a feeling she was not going to sleep tonight. She headed for her room and began packing a bag. She was hoping that Branch was up to company, because she wasn’t sure she should stick around while Guy Diamond and Poppy mated. They were loud in bed, and she could only imagine how much louder they would be now that there were no babies around. Once she was all set, she turned to go, and stood face to face with Poppy.

“Where are you going?” Poppy smiled at her. She was nude except for panties.

Fairy’s eyes went wide. She was shocked to see Poppy in nothing but her panties. “Umm…you are underdressed.” She blushed brightly and gapped her mouth open.

“Mmhmm…” Poppy grabbed the bag and set it aside. “I am underdressed.” She pulled Fairy towards her and held her close. “You can stay home and join us.” She offered, interested in Fairy. She had been falling in love with her.

“I…I…” Fairy looked up at Poppy and blushed. She wriggled a bit but was in a state of shock. She couldn’t get over how pretty Poppy was, especially without clothes on. She had been slowly gaining interest, but had kept it to herself, knowing they were married, and were the future king and queen of the village. She didn’t think she stood a chance. “Join you?”

Guy Diamond walked in and picked up Poppy. He laughed when Fairy whacked him. He grinned, noticing she had ahold of Fairy. “Oh? She’s going to stay after all?” He had noticed her getting ready to go, and thought she was going to leave. He headed for the bedroom with them both.

Fairy squeaked when Guy Diamond picked them up. She whacked him, feeling the need to protect herself. She blushed when he laughed as a reaction. “What are you two going to do with me?” She flushed when Guy Diamond set her down in their bed. “Shouldn’t we talk about this?” She had concerns.

“Mmm…yes, we should.” Poppy poked her gently on the nose. “Are you joining us, or are you leaving?”

“If you stay, we will spoil you.” Guy Diamond grabbed massage oil from the coffee table. He rubbed it onto his hands and had Poppy lay on her belly. He began messaging her gently.

Fairy blushed and bit her bottom lip. She hadn’t seen signs that they were interested in her too, but she had been so busy with her babies. She realized it now. “I’ll stay.”

Poppy smiled and pat the spot beside her. “Guy Diamond gives the best back messages. Lay down on your tummy.”

Guy Diamond worked on a knot on Poppy’s lower back. “Mmm…that knot is being mean to you.”

Fairy took off her dress and laid down beside Poppy. She was only in her panties. She looked over at Poppy and smiled at her. “I’ll beat that knot up for being mean to you.”

Poppy giggled, and then groaned as he worked on the knot. “Oh my god, that feels good…”

Guy Diamond got the knot out, and then put more oil on his hands. He moved over to Fairy and put his hands on her back. He began working on her next. “You are so tense Fairy. Relax…” He felt a lot of knots in her back.

Fairy gasped when he ran his glittery hands along her back. She groaned and closed her eyes tightly. She indeed had a lot of knots. Being stressed and tense hadn’t helped her with that.

Poppy ran her hand through Fairy’s white hair. “Relax sweetie.” She inched a little closer and rubbed her scalp gently. She loved when Guy Diamond played with her hair and hoped that it would help her relax. She began to sing softly to her, hoping it would help her calm down further.

Guy Diamond ran his hands along her back and shoulders. She was slowly relaxing. He smiled and ran his hands long her hip and lower back. He gently removed her panties so he could work on her buttocks. He set them aside and worked on her hips and butt. He was slowly making his way down to her thighs. “There we go…” He could feel her melt into the bed and relax.

Fairy slowly relaxed, feeling their hands work on her back and scalp. She mumbled that they spoiled her. She wasn’t used to this much passion and love. Chili had shown her a lot of love, but they were always stressed and never relaxed enough to do things like this. She looked into Poppy’s eyes and took a deep breath. “I’m falling in love with you both.”

“I love you too Fairy.” Poppy pulled her close and gave her a passionate kiss. She removed her own undies, feeling very aroused.

“I love you as well Fairy.” Guy Diamond bit his bottom lip and waited for a turn to kiss her. Once Poppy let her go, he pulled Fairy in and kissed her passionately.

Fairy breathed hard and returned Poppy’s kiss. She barely got a breath before Guy Diamond pulled her in for his own kiss. She returned it and flushed when she felt a familiar wetness between her legs. She was aroused. She blushed, feeling Guy Diamond’s erection pressed into her skin. She shifted nervously. She was afraid to make the first move.

Poppy wasn’t shy. She noticed that Fairy was wet. She reached down and ran his hand along Fairy’s inner thigh. She touched her vulva and began to rub her clitoris gently.

Guy Diamond bit his bottom lip and pulled Poppy closer to him. He grabbed her hips and pushed his length into her. He began to thrust eagerly.

Fairy gasped, feeling Poppy’s fingers along her clitoris. She arched her back and moaned. She breathed and looked at them as Guy Diamond began to thrust into Poppy roughly. He was rocking the bed. “Oh my god…” She gasped when Poppy hit a pressure spot, making her shiver in delight.

Poppy moaned and shivered when Guy Diamond entered her. She kissed along his neck and chest as he thrust into her. She put a little pressure on a special spot on Fairy, that she had learned about while experimenting with Guy Diamond. She smirked, noticing a good reaction. She was very happy that Fairy had joined them.

Guy Diamond kissed Poppy, and then pulled out and positioned over Fairy. He pulled her close and pushed his length into her next. He began to thrust into her, filling her with his length.

Fairy breathed hard when he pushed into her and moaned loudly. She was pleasantly surprised at how good his length felt inside her. She pushed her walls tight against him and moved her hips in rhythm with his hips.

Poppy shifted and began kissing Fairy. She giggled when she felt Fairy reach over and message her vulva. She was very pleased.

This continued into the night. All three were extremely happy and Fairy was a lot more relaxed. She was very happy to be a part of their lives.


	25. Super Happy Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Another royal wedding has everyone very excited.

Poppy and Guy Diamond didn’t wait long. Just a few days had gone by, and they were getting ready to remarry. This time, they would have Fairy with them, joining them as a second princess and wife.

Fairy had already dressed in a light raspberry colored sweater dress and was busy putting Pearl in a dress. The little one was not a glitter troll, but still hated clothes. She was having a hard time getting her to hold still long enough to get it on her. “Come on Pearl, this dress is not going to hurt you.”

Pearl was showing just how abled she was despite missing an arm. She used her left arm, her hair, and her feet to do everything possible to avoid that dress. Her cheeks were flushed red and she was angry. “No!”

“You’re not going wrapped up in a blanket or my hair! Get this dress on you stubborn little worm!” Fairy pinned her daughter down and got it over her head. She pulled the dress down and pulled her arm through the left sleeve. “See? It’s nice and warm, and it’s soft.”

Pearl threw herself back and screamed. She was not a happy girl. She hated clothes.

“Someone has a temper after all. Here I thought she was all cupcakes and rainbows.” Guy Diamond chuckled. “You look beautiful Fairy.” He walked over and helped her straighten her dress up. He ran his hand through her long white hair and stuck a crown in her hair. “There we go. Perfect.” He reached down and gave her a kiss.

“I can’t imagine where she got that attitude.” Fairy grinned, knowing full well that her daughter got a bit of spunk from her. She kissed Guy Diamond, and then went to get Habanero dressed. He was a lot calmer about it, and even smiled when she pulled up his dress pants. “Good boy…”

Pearl got up and began trying to pull the dress off. She grunted and threw herself back when Guy Diamond put it back on.

“Easy sweetheart, it’s alright.” Guy Diamond picked her up and held her. “I don’t like clothes either, but sometimes it’s necessary.” He went to check on Poppy, who was having her own struggle with Jewel.

Jewel wriggled and fussed as Poppy put her dress on. She was a glitter trolling and hated clothes.

“Easy baby…” Poppy got the dress on and kissed her cheek. “See, it’s not that bad. Look? Sissy River has her dress on.”

River was running her hand along her dress. It was soft and felt good along her skin. She loved being warm and snug. “Pee.” She got up and headed for the toilet.

“I got her.” Guy Diamond picked River up and headed for the bathroom. She didn’t make it every time she said pee, but she was getting better about holding it. He was still impressed that she had learned it only by observing Pearl.

Once everyone was all set and ready to go, they headed towards the concert mushroom as a family. Guy Diamond had River in his hair, Poppy had Jewel in her hair, and Fairy had little Pearl and Habanero in her hair.

Everyone was by the concert mushroom. Branch was standing right there near the front. He was very happy that Fairy had found love again. He had been worried about her. He knew how close she was to her brother and knew she had had a bond with Chili as well. He recalled the times they all played together as kids, and she was the one that saved his life in the hot spring cave that had the salt. If it hadn’t been for her, he would be dead. One of many trolls that impacted his life at his old village. As they got closer, he began to sing. As he sang, his colors began to go light blue with a hint of green, and his hair turned royal blue. Everyone turned to him and gasped in surprise. Only his old village knew his true colors, and only a few remembered him being blue with royal blue hair. They gapped their mouths and then began to cheer with joy.

Fairy blushed when Branch began to sing. She had never heard him sing before and felt honored that he sang to her in her honor. She walked over and gave him a hug. “Thank you Branch. You are the bestest friend I have ever had.”

Smidge was flushed, and a mix of happy and jealous. He just now went back to having color? She hadn’t done that. She sighed and crossed her arms. “About time you got your colors back…”

Branch pulled Pearl and Habanero out of her hair and put them in his hair. “I’m babysitting.” He grinned, feeling Pearl pull her dress off. “She is not subtle…” He watched the dress get tossed out of his hair.

Guy Diamond laughed. He was very amused. He walked over to Creek and handed him River. “Be good for daddy.” He kissed her cheek.

“Thank you for watching them.” Poppy gave Jewel to DJ Suki. “You two are the greatest.” She turned and grabbed Guy Diamond and Fairy by the hand. She walked towards her father and smiled at him and her stepmom.

“I’m happy for you three. I have something important to tell you after the wedding, so don’t run off too fast.” King Peppy smiled at them.

Poppy shared a worried glance with Guy Diamond. She was hoping that it wasn’t about Fairy. She hadn’t heard of a three-way royalty before, so she was worried where Fairy would stand as far as hierarchy was concerned. “Alright dad. Is everything alright?”

“Yes dear, everything is fine.” Peppy gave the vows to Honey and gently nudged her towards them. He had a big smile on his face. He wanted her to have the honor of marrying their daughter, since she was not going to have a chance to marry that many couples.

Queen Honey smiled at Peppy and stood facing the whole village. She gave Poppy a reassuring smile. “Thank you everyone for gathering with us this beautiful winter day. We have all gathered here today to unite two families into one. Prince Guy Diamond and Princess Poppy will be joining hands with beloved Fairy. River and Jewel will become daughters to Fairy, and Pearl and Habanero will become daughter and son to Guy Diamond and Poppy. This family will become one and be bonded for life. On Poppy’s twenty first birthday in about one year and one month, Fairy will also become queen of our village. Do all three of you agree to this?”

“I do.” Guy Diamond and Poppy said at the same time.

Fairy looked shocked. She didn’t know she was going to be given such an honor. She looked up at Honey and nodded. “I do.”

“With agreement, I wed these three as husband and wives. You may now share kisses.” Honey smiled and stepped back so she was by King Peppy. She was extremely happy for young Fairy. She knew that girl had had it rough the last year, and this was a good thing for her and her young children.

Guy Diamond and Poppy knelt. They shared a kiss, and then Poppy kissed Fairy first. Guy Diamond kissed Fairy next. All three held each other close as the whole crowd roared in approval. They were all glad that Fairy was joining the royal family. They knew she would be a good leader, just like Guy Diamond and Poppy.

Once they were done kissing, Poppy turned to her father and walked over. “What’s going on?” She looked worried.

Peppy smiled softly. He knew she was worried, but there was nothing to worry about. He took her hand and smiled. “Honey made a wonderful discovery about a week ago, and we were holding off announcing it until she felt a little better. She was afraid she wasn’t going to be able to make it here today to wed you three, but thankfully her stomach has been nice to her today.” He glanced at Honey and smiled at her. He looked at Poppy and sighed happily. “She’s pregnant with twins.”

Poppy’s eyes went wide, and she squealed with joy. She hurried over to Honey and hugged her. “This is the best news ever! I’m going to have little siblings!” She was shaking with excitement. She had been an only child for so long, and the thought of having more family other then her stepbrothers was very exciting.

Honey giggled and hugged Poppy back. She was glad she was excited. She had been worried about her reaction. It was a little odd after all having babies, knowing that King Peppy was a grandpa, and with Cricket being old enough to live on his own. She hoped things would go smoothly. She was no spring chicken, but she was young enough, and so was King Peppy. They would manage just fine.

Fairy and Guy Diamond grinned at each other. This day was full of good news and happiness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the song Branch sang. I do not own the song. All credit goes to the song writers and song artists.
> 
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jorJh8DTMVM


	26. Glitter Tears

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There is comfort for a lonely troll with a rough past.

A couple months had gone by, and it was starting to warm up again. Aquamarine was by the river, fishing. He had been keeping to himself since joining the village. He was glad everyone else was moving on, but his heart ached still. He sat by the water’s edge and closed his eyes. A lot had happened to him the last eleven years, and the last year before coming to this village had been extra brutal. He felt a few tears roll down his cheeks. He quickly wiped them away. He glanced around, hoping no one had seen that. He was still wary about showing any sort of grief around other trolls. Willow had made him extremely cautious.

Creek’s twin brother, Stream was on his way to the river to fish. He saw Aquamarine as he approached the water. He stopped and frowned, noticing his emotional aura was dark blue. He sighed and walked towards him. The lavender colored troll looked a lot like his twin, but his hair was green at the base, and blue at the tip. He sat by Aquamarine and cast his rod. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing…” Aquamarine straightened up and continued to wait for a nibble. He had been distracted and missed a chance to catch a fish. His bait was gone. He hadn’t noticed yet.

“You seem troubled.” Stream sighed and looked at the water. “I can see your emotional aura is dark blue, which means you are very sad. You can talk to me if you like. I won’t spread secrets.”

“That’s great, so you know I am sad? Well might as well kill me now.” Aquamarine said sharply. He reeled in his line and closed his eyes tight. A string of nasty nightmares and memories had made him extra bitter on this particular day.

Stream frowned and moved closer. He reached over and gave Aquamarine a tight hug. He could tell that he was hurting, and was scared, even though he was not expressing those emotions physically. “You don’t deserve death. You need a hug.”

Aquamarine’s eyes opened and went wide. He wasn’t sure what to do with this hug. He began to breathe a little hard. He could feel tears coming. He had been needing a good cry for so long, but he didn’t dear in fear he would get into trouble. He pushed Stream off and turned his back to him. “Hugs are for the weak.” He wiped a few tears away.

“Hugs help take away pain.” Stream reeled in his line and pulled Aquamarine into another hug. “You have a lot of pain in your past. I can sense it.” He put his hand on his chest and closed his eyes. “I sense a broken heart as well. You had a family, didn’t you?”

Aquamarine cringed and hugged into his knees. “I did. They’re all gone now. I was taken from my family when I was ten. I was forced into becoming a warrior because that demon queen loved how feisty I am. I fell in love with this handsome fella. We each had a baby on the same day two years ago today. She didn’t like those kids. She said they were too soft. She killed my mate when he tried to protect our babies. When Fairy said she was going to turn against the evil queen, I told her I would help her and defend her with my life. I am glad Branch killed her, but my heart is broken. I don’t think I will ever be happy again.” He closed his eyes and tried hard not to cry. The only reason he had his color was because he knew there was still hope when Fairy said she was going to turn against the evil queen. It had given him enough for him to get his colors back.

Stream’s heart broke for him. He could only imagine how hard that was for him. Losing family twice in a lifetime was more then a little rough. He leaned his head on Aquamarine and closed his eyes. “It’s OK to cry.” He could feel an extreme need for him to release all the pain and grief that he was holding.

“I can’t. I will get in trouble.” Aquamarine grit his teeth and turned to Stream. He buried his face into Stream’s chest and chocked up a sob.

“You won’t get in trouble. I won’t allow that.” Stream held him close.

Aquamarine began to cry. He hugged Stream close and let it go. He had been needing to do this for a long time.

Stream ran his hand through Aquamarine’s light blue hair and began to hum. He was a very peaceful troll and was the village’s counselor. He was very use to doing things like this for everyone, so having Aquamarine cry on him was nothing new. He loved helping out, and Aquamarine was not the first one from Branch’s village that he had helped out. He had held Marjoram when she had a good cry and had talked Fairy through her own break down a few months earlier. He was very sad that they had all seemed to go through a lot of heartache. He was quietly hoping that no one else, including these new villagers would ever have to go through that sort of heartache again.

After a good cry, Aquamarine pulled his head up and dried his face off. 

“Feel better?” Stream offered him a tissue from his pants pocket.

Aquamarine blew his nose and nodded. “Yeah, I do feel better.” He looked at his fishing pole and sighed. He put a worm on the hook and cast it out. “Thank you…”

“You’re so welcome.” Stream threw his cast out and sat beside Aquamarine as they fished. He was glad that he made Aquamarine feel better and was hoping to get to know him. His spirit was nice, and he seemed like someone who could use extra tender love and care.


	27. Twins Galore

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Biggie has a panic filled day.

Marjoram’s due date had come, and even passed a few days. She was very round in the midsection. Biggie was keeping a close eye on her. He was worried about her. They had found out half way through the pregnancy that she was indeed carrying twins, and it was amazing that she had made it to her due date, let alone a few days passed it. As they got comfortable in bed, Marjoram reached over and grabbed his arm. She took a deep breath but made no other indication that she was having a contraction.

Biggie sat up and looked at her. He recalled she had held back expressing pain the last time she was in labor. He quickly put pants on, put Winter in his hair, and picked her up. He hurried for the medical pod. With her delivering twins, and him not handling blood well, he was not going to do this alone. He got into the medical pod and set her down in a bed. “Don’t fret my love.”

“I think the only one freaking out is you.” Marjoram laid on her side and hugged a pillow. She breathed through a contraction. She was a lot calmer then Biggie was.

Honey walked over. She was heavy with pod herself but had insisted she work until her babies were born. She hated holding still. She smiled at Marjoram and checked her over. “You have a couple of healthy babies in there, ready to come soon. Don’t forget to breathe.” She sat beside her and ran her hand along her dark green hair.

“You shouldn’t be working Honey. You’re near your own due date.” Biggie looked worried.

“She’s not alone Biggie.” Mama Goldie was crushing herbs for medicine. She had less work to do since Honey came into the village, but she still worked on medicine and potions. It never hurt to have someone stand by.

Marjoram grumbled that Biggie worried too much. She was in a bad mood.

“I need to be here when I deliver anyway. I am at high risk for a couple reasons to have complications. My age, and twins being the biggest problem.” Honey smiled softly.

“So, you’re living here?” Biggie looked confused and glanced at Marjoram. He took her hand and winced when she squeezed hard.

“Oh, heavens no, Peppy wouldn’t allow that.” Honey smiled. “I have just been here at night since it’s never busy here at that time.” She put her hand on her belly, feeling her own contraction.

Marjoram breathed and looked at Honey’s expression. “Our babies might share birthdays.” She smiled softly.

“Oh god, you too?!” Biggie stood up and frowned. He was really freaked out now.

“Sit down Biggie. We don’t need you to faint.” Mama Goldie helped Honey into bed, and then walked out. She went to get Peppy.

“Mew.” Mr. Dinkles was on Biggie’s shoulder.

“He does look pale Mr. Dinkles. Lay down before you fall down Biggie.” Marjoram sighed.

Biggie sat down and looked between the laboring mamas. He didn’t like that Mama Goldie had left. “I think I might be sick.”

“Puke into the trash can please. Mama Goldie is going to be busy enough when the babies start coming.” Marjoram grumbled. She gritted her teeth and groaned during a contraction.

Honey watched them quietly and smiled softly. Biggie was such a sweetheart and it was cute seeing him so nervous about them both.

Biggie reached for the trashcan and faceplanted. He had fainted.

“Oh great…” Marjoram sighed and looked down at her fainted mate. “Are you OK Mr. Dinkles?”

“Mew.” Mr. Dinkles crawled into the bed with her and snuggled close.

“I saw that coming.” Honey smiled softly. “And your babies are not even born yet.”

Mama Goldie returned with King Peppy and went to help Biggie back up. “I was gone five minutes kid…” She fanned him and smiled softly.

Biggie was starting to come to when Mama Goldie helped him up. He groaned and held his head.

Peppy walked to Honey’s side and held her hand. He looked nervous, but excited at the same time.

“Oh god…” Marjoram could feel the first of her twins emerging. She reached down and grabbed her as she was born.

Mama Goldie grabbed a blanket and began cleaning the little one up. “Good job mama.” She got her clean, gave her to her mama, and waited for the next baby. When she was born, she grabbed her and cleaned her up too. “They are beautiful.” She gave the second twin to Marjoram to hold. They were identical twin girls with dark blue skin and dark green hair. 

Biggie watched on with wide eyes. He weaved a bit but managed to remain conscious through the births.

“Don’t faceplant again please.” Marjoram groaned and glanced at the time. It was almost midnight, so her thoughts of the twins sharing birthdays with Honey’s twins was about to expire. “How about Wisp and Nim?”

“They are lovely names.” Biggie smiled softly and kissed her lightly. He looked nervous. “I love you.”

“I love you.” Marjoram kissed him.

Mama Goldie walked over to Honey and checked her. “You are getting close Honey.”

Honey breathed hard and held Peppy’s hand. She cried out as the first of her twins arrived. It was a little boy. He was light orange with light pink hair. He let out cries as Mama Goldie cleaned him. She gently gave Peppy his little son.

“This one shares his birthday with Wisp and Nim.” Marjoram smiled softly. “The next one won’t.” She saw the time change to midnight.

“Twins with different birthdays.” Peppy chuckled and held Honey’s hand. “You can do it mama.”

Honey struggled to deliver the next twin, but she eventually came out. She was light yellow like her mama with bright pink hair. She let out cries as she was cleaned by Mama Goldie.

“You did a good job Honey.” Mama Goldie gently gave the little one to her mama.

Honey breathed and cradled her baby. She was tired, but very happy. 

“Bee for the girl, and Bumble for the boy?” Peppy wanted to name them after their mama.

Honey smiled softly and nodded. “Sounds good my love.” She breathed and closed her eyes. She was a very tired mama.


	28. Lots Of Love

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aquamarine is the last troll of Branch's old village to need closure. Will he get it?

Stream was on his way to Aquamarine’s flower pod. He had been seeing him regularly since the day he helped him by the river. He was falling in love with the light blue glitter troll. He knocked on his door when he arrived at his flower pod.

Aquamarine answered the door and smiled. “Hello Stream, I was getting ready to go take a bath at the waterfall. Would you like to join me?”

“I would love to join you.” Stream smiled at him and took his hand. He began heading towards the hidden waterfall. He had a big smile on his face.

Aquamarine wasn’t the only one who thought that waterfall sounded like fun. Branch and Smidge were getting their three boys ready.

“Are you sure they are ready for swimming lessons?” Branch had concerns. Especially for Basil. They were only a year and a half year old, and he was worried about them drowning.

“The sooner we teach them, the better it will be for them. I don’t want them to drown if they ever fall into the lake or river.” Smidge put on a backpack and grinned. “We’re going to the waterfall. It’s shallow there.”

“Where we?” Branch groaned and blushed. He wasn’t sure about taking them to where they had first mated.

“Yes, were we became mates.” Smidge smirked, put Twig in her hair, and grabbed his hand. She headed for the elevator shaft. She had a determined look on her face. She wanted her boys to learn how to swim.

Branch walked with her and sighed. He had Basil and Sky in his hair. He wasn’t so sure about this, but persuading Smidge was darn near impossible. “Just remember we have our boys with us. They don’t need to watch us.”

At the waterfall, Aquamarine and Stream were nude under the water. Both were washing up and were not shy about each other. A matter of fact, Aquamarine was admiring Stream’s nude body. He kept glancing at his large manhood. He bit his bottom lip and grinned, having naughty thoughts. His own member was starting to swell. He squirmed and tried to get it to calm down.

Stream looked over and blushed, noticing he was excited. He moved closer and pulled him close. “It’s alright, this area is well hidden.” He began to kiss him.

Aquamarine gasped and began kissing him back. He shivered when Stream reached down and stroked his member. “Stream…” He reached down and felt Stream’s member. It was starting to swell. “You are interested too…”

“I am…” Stream reached down and began giving Aquamarine head. He ran his tongue along the tip of Aquamarine’s member.

Aquamarine gasped and grabbed Stream’s hair. He pulled, feeling extremely pleased. “That feels so good.”

“Mmhmm…” Stream let him go and got behind him. He began to tease him with his length.

“Oh my god, please…” Aquamarine stepped back into him. He wanted him.

Stream pushed into him and began to thrust into him. He moaned loudly. He was very pleased.

Aquamarine moaned loudly and moved his hips with Stream. He was very pleased.

DJ Suki thought she heard her mate at the waterfall. She headed that way, curious why he was making moaning noises. She flushed when she saw Stream mating with Aquamarine. She got into the water and stormed towards them. “Creek! What the hell are you doing?!” She looked pissed.

Stream pulled out of Aquamarine and blushed. “DJ!”

Aquamarine pulled his knife out and got between Stream and DJ Suki. He growled angrily. “Leave him alone!”

Branch heard yelling and ran towards the waterfall. Smidge was at his heels. It was rare to hear DJ Suki that angry.

“You cheated on me!” DJ Suki raged and tried to get around Aquamarine. She didn’t realize it was Stream because his hair was wet, and it made his hair look more like Creek’s hair. “What the hell were you thinking?! We have our babies to raise!”

Stream kept trying to get a word in, but she kept interrupting.

“He’s not your mate!” Aquamarine sneered. “He’s mine! Go away!” He was livid that DJ Suki was yelling at Stream. He had done nothing wrong.

“What’s going on?!” Smidge looked between Aquamarine and Stream. She frowned seeing that DJ Suki looked enraged.

Branch looked confused. He was wondering why Creek was naked and being protected by Aquamarine.

“What’s going on?!” Creek had heard DJ Suki yelling and came to investigate. “Oh my god, Stream! Seriously why are you naked…” He covered his eyes. He didn’t need to see his brother naked.

DJ Suki turned, hearing Creek. She blushed and facepalmed. “Oh my god, sorry Stream.” She walked over to Creek and led him away. She was embarrassed.

Smidge blushed and took Branch’s hand and led him away from the waterfall. “Sorry you two!” She waved good bye. “Have fun!”

Branch looked at Creek, and then at Stream. He looked confused. “God, they look nearly identical.”

“Sorry, that happens sometimes. Especially when my hair is wet. First time I seen DJ Suki freak out about it though.” Stream hugged Aquamarine from behind and sighed.

Aquamarine grumbled and put his knife away. “Let’s move this to the flower pod. I don’t want to be interrupted again.” He took Stream’s hand and walked towards his clothes. He helped him get dressed.

Stream started to get dressed. “So, does this mean we’re mates?” He looked hopeful.

“Yes, I want to be your mate.” Aquamarine smiled and kissed him. “I love you Stream.”

“I love you too Aqua.” Stream kissed him back. He was hoping this was a weird but wonderful start to a great relationship.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This ends part 1 of The Family Curse. I plan at least a handful of parts in this series. Hope you all have enjoyed it so far!


End file.
